Department for Transport

Severn Beach Railway Line: Electrification

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of the electrification of the Severn Beach line.

Andrew Jones: Network Rail have not currently considered electrification of the line. However, the upgrade work from Dr Days Junction to Filton Abbey Wood, recently completed successfully, will directly benefit the service on the Severn Beach line. In particular, the separation of local stopping services from the faster Intercity trains will relieve a bottleneck outside Bristol Temple Meads.

Electric Vehicles: Charging Points

Sandy Martin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans his Department has to review the guidelines on installing charging points for electric vehicles; and if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of allowing a charging point to be installed at a place other than the address at which the vehicle is registered.

Jesse Norman: The Electric Vehicle Homecharge Scheme EVHS guidelines do state that the chargepoint must be installed at the address of the driver. The EVHS is periodically reviewed by the Department to consider improvements to the scheme.

Transport: Private Finance Initiative

Andy McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the viability of future private funding for (a) road and (b) rail projects as a result of the decision in Budget 2018 to abolish private finance initiatives.

Jesse Norman: The Government has retired PF2, a model which proved inflexible, costly and overly complex. The Department for Transport is continuing to assess ways to support private investment, on a project by project basis and where it provides value for money and fair risk transfer.

High Speed Two Railway Line: Buckinghamshire

Dame Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has discussed the implications of local government reorganisation in Buckinghamshire at any HS2 Ltd Board meetings to date.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: The Secretary of State for Transport does not attend HS2 Ltd Board meetings. Neither the Department nor HS2 Ltd have held formal discussions on this matter to date. However, the potential impact of the proposed changes has been discussed informally and will continue to be addressed as necessary to maintain smooth interactions between the parties.

Large Goods Vehicle Drivers: Safety

Graham P Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans his Department has to ensure the safety of HGV drivers using (a) lay-bys and (b) overnight parking places.

Jesse Norman: Enforcement against criminal activity against HGV drivers and their vehicles is a matter for the police. The Department will continue to engage with stakeholders to encourage the development of more safe, secure and high-quality lorry parking facilities. In particular, Highways England is developing its role as statutory planning consultee for such developments on the strategic road network, and this will include consideration of desirable criteria for lorry parking such as security features. In addition, the Department will consider how best to promote the uptake in the UK of the forthcoming EU-wide classifications for safe and secure lorry parking sites.

Buses: Renewable Fuels

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what proportion of buses in regular operation are powered solely by renewable fuels.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: There are approximately 40,000 buses in regular operation in Great Britain, with 177 powered solely by renewable fuels. 167 of these are powered by biomethane and 10 are powered by hydrogen. In 2019, a further 20 hydrogen buses are due to enter service in Birmingham and 110 biomethane buses are due to enter service in Bristol. All these buses have received funding from the Low Emission Bus Scheme.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Energy: Meters

Dr Alan Whitehead: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what the average cost is of raising a second export meter point administration number in domestic homes for the purposes of metered export; and on which parties such costs fall.

Claire Perry: Distribution Network Operators have confirmed that they provide meter point administration numbers free of charge to domestic homes in these circumstances. They have also confirmed that they recover the costs of doing so through network charges that are passed on by suppliers to end consumers.

Climate Change: EU Action

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether the Government plans to maintain alignment with EU climate change policy after the UK leaves the EU.

Claire Perry: UK government’s action to tackle climate change is framed by the Climate Change Act. This is domestic legislation and is therefore unaffected by exiting the EU. The UK is committed to international cooperation, including with the EU, on issues of shared interest including climate change.

Post Offices: Standards

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether he has made a comparative assessment of the level of customer service provided at post offices operated by (a) the Post Office and (b) WH Smith; and if he will make a statement.

Kelly Tolhurst: The Government has no involvement in the day to day running of the Post Office. The Post Office is committed to ensuring all branches across its network offer excellent customer service and has a long history of working with its many franchise partners, including WHSmith to achieve this.

Proprietary Drugs

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to the march-in rights provided by the US Bayh-Dole Act 1980, if he will introduce such rights in Medical Research Council (MRC) contracts, to enable the Government to license a patent to a third party for a MRC-funded medicine.

Mr Sam Gyimah: The ownership of intellectual property (IP) arising from publicly funded research in the UK, including from Medical Research Council (MRC), resides with the research organisation within which the research is undertaken; which could be a university, independent research organisation or research council institute. These research organisations are expected to have exploitation arrangements in place as a condition of the transfer of IP ownership (for example, in Research Council grants), to enable third parties, including businesses and other organisations, to licence or commercialise the results of this research.Where research is conducted in an MRC owned unit or institute, the arising IP is owned by the MRC. MRC uses LifeArc as its “technology transfer agent” for the protection, management and exploitation of this IP, including licencing to business and other organisations. Royalties arising from these licensing activities, and from licensing to any spin-outs based on any MRC-owned IP, are owned by the MRC for as long as the patent is effective; the earned income is re-invested by MRC in research.

Radioactive Materials

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to Article 83, paragraphs (1) and (2) of the Draft Agreement on the withdrawal of the UK from the EU and the European Atomic Energy Agency, dated 14 November 2018, who will own fissile materials stored at UK nuclear facilities after the UK withdraws from that agency.

Richard Harrington: Under the current European Atomic Energy Community (“Euratom”) Treaty arrangements, special fissile material is collectively owned by the Euratom Community, but the operator with the legal title to the material has an “unlimited right of use and consumption” over it, subject to their complying with the obligations imposed on them by the Treaty. This form of supranational, or sovereign, ownership underpins the regulation of special fissile materials by the Euratom Community in accordance with the Euratom Treaty.The UK and EU have agreed that when the UK leaves the EU, Euratom’s supranational ownership arrangements will cease to apply in the UK. Article 83(1) removes Euratom’s ‘sovereign’ ownership and rights in relation to material held in the UK at the end of the implementation period. As Euratom ownership will cease as a result of 83(1), Article 83(2) clarifies that those operators that currently hold title to the material will be the sole owners of it, with all the rights and obligations that apply to it. These provisions will not have any practical impact on the day to day management and use of the material.

Drugs

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what his assessment is of the potential costs to the pharmaceutical industry of Article 45 of the Draft Agreement on the withdrawal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland from the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community.

Kelly Tolhurst: There will be no cost to the pharmaceutical industry as a result of Article 45 of the draft Withdrawal Agreement. The Article requires the UK to share marketing authorisation data with the European Medicines Agency or Member States where needed for assessing generic marketing applications when requested. Member States will also be required to provide the UK with the same information when requested. The UK’s Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency already regularly shares and receives such data with the European Medicines Agency and other Member States.

Offshore Industry

Andrew Bowie: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what progress has been made on the oil and gas sector deal.

Claire Perry: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Kilmarnock and Loudoun on 15th November 2018 to Question 189741 on a potential Offshore Oil and Gas Sector Deal.

Innovate UK: Northern Ireland

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how much and what proportion of Innovate UK's core budget was allocated to support business-led innovation in Northern Ireland in 2017.

Mr Sam Gyimah: Innovate UK’s total core funding commitment to Northern Ireland[1] in 2017/18 was £5,624,883. This amounts to around 1% of Innovate UK’s total core funding. [1] based on the registered address of the companies – as stated on their application form – which is not always the same as the address at which the project work will be taking place.

Foreign Students: Safety

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what guidance he has provided to the university sector on the safety of students while doing research overseas.

Mr Sam Gyimah: The general duties of an employer with regards to their staff and other people affected in some way by their business activities (i.e. researchers) are contained within the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 (HSAW). Additionally, employers have a common law duty to take reasonable care for their employees. While the HSAW only applies to those working in the UK, there is an expectation that employers consider HSAW aspects of employees working overseas. Individual organisations, including Universities and Research Councils, publish their own guidance on employees working abroad.

Registration of Overseas Entities Bill (Draft)

Rebecca Long Bailey: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what the timetable is for the Government response to the consultation on the draft Registration of Overseas Entities Bill.

Kelly Tolhurst: The Government published the draft Registration of Overseas Entities Bill on 23 July. Alongside this, an Overview Document was published which, while providing an overview of the policy and how the register will work, sought views on how the clauses will be implemented in practice.The draft Bill is expected to undergo pre-legislative scrutiny by a joint ad hoc Committee. The Committee will report to Parliament, following which the Government intends to respond to the Committee’s report. The response will reflect the responses to the Overview Document.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

North Korea: Sanctions

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential effect of the imposition of secondary sanctions against governments that fail to comply with UN sanctions against North Korea.

Mark Field: ​We are working with our international partners to ensure that all existing UN Security Council measures in respect of DPRK are fully implemented. In addition, the UN Panel of Experts is mandated to gather, examine and analyse information provided by States on their implementation of the measures, as well as information on incidents of non-compliance. A number of individuals, entities and vessels have been designated at the UN for activities which are prohibited by relevant Security Council resolutions or the evasion of sanctions.

Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to Articles 81 and 82 of the Draft Agreement on the withdrawal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland from the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community, dated 14 November 2018, what bodies external to the UK will verify compliance with UK obligations under the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.

Sir Alan Duncan: The NPT does not require the UK, as a nuclear weapons State, to agree safeguards agreements with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Since 1978, the UK has voluntarily accepted the application of safeguards in the United Kingdom in connection with the NPT through tri-lateral nuclear safeguards arrangements between the UK, the IAEA and Euratom – a Voluntary Offer Agreement (VOA) and, later, an Additional Protocol (AP). On 7 June 2018 the UK and the IAEA signed a new VOA and new AP to replace the existing trilateral agreements that include Euratom. The new VOA and AP were presented to Parliament for ratification on 12 November. The new VOA and AP ensure that the IAEA retains its right to inspect all civil nuclear facilities, and continues to receive all current safeguards reporting, thus ensuring that international verification of our safeguards activity continues to be robust.

USA: Radicalism

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of whether there are financial links between the far-right in the UK and similar groups in the US.

Sir Alan Duncan: The Government is committed to tackling all forms of extremism – including Far Right extremism. The Foreign & Commonwealth Office has not however done any assessment of whether there are financial links between the Far Right in the UK and similar groups in the US. We work closely with other Government Departments to respond to evidence of international extremist influences where these are identified. As part of our regular bilateral engagement with international partners, including the United States of America, we will continue to raise our concerns, and explore opportunities to work together to address the wide spectrum of risks arising from all forms of extremism.

Political Prisoners: British Nationals Abroad

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what his policy is on the unconditional release of UK citizens detained as political prisoners overseas.

Alistair Burt: ​'Support for British nationals abroad: A Guide' available online describes the consular assistance that can be provided to British nationals detained overseas. We aim to provide assistance according to individual circumstances and local conditions. We can, where appropriate and with the individual's consent, intervene in cases where British nationals are alleged not to have been treated in line with internationally-accepted human rights.

Political Prisoners: British Nationals Abroad

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policy on the unconditional release of UK citizens detained as political prisoners overseas of paying to the Government of Iran funds relating to the purchase of Chieftain tanks through International Military Services.

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he discussed with his Iranian counterpart the release of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe in relation to the payment to the Government of Iran funds relating to the purchase of Chieftain tanks through International Military Services.

Alistair Burt: We remain deeply concerned about all our dual nationals detained in Iran, including Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe. We raise these cases with the Iranian government at every opportunity, including during the Foreign Secretary's visit to Tehran on 20 November. We will continue to take action in line with what we believe will produce the best outcomes in their cases. The UK is clear that there is no link between bilateral issues and our consular cases, nor should there be.

Convention Concerning Indigenous and Tribal Peoples in Independent Countries

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether his Department plans to ratify the Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention, 1989.

Mark Field: There are no plans to ratify the International Labour Organisation Convention 169. The Government already has a strong legal and policy framework to promote and protect human rights for all individuals, including indigenous people. We continue to work overseas and through international institutions such as the United Nations to improve the situation of those facing discrimination. In 2007, the UK supported the adoption of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and in May 2017 the European Union’s Foreign Affairs Council adopted conclusions on indigenous peoples.

Indigenous Peoples: Protection

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to ensure the protection of indigenous populations around the world.

Mark Field: There are no plans to ratify the International Labour Organisation Convention 169. The Government already has a strong legal and policy framework to promote and protect human rights for all individuals, including indigenous people. We continue to work overseas and through international institutions such as the United Nations to improve the situation of those facing discrimination. In 2007, the UK supported the adoption of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and in May 2017 the European Union’s Foreign Affairs Council adopted conclusions on indigenous peoples.

Bahrain: Human Rights

Thelma Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterpart in Bahrain on human rights.

Alistair Burt: The UK and Bahrain enjoy an open dialogue where we are able to discuss a range of issues, including human rights. During my visit to Bahrain 26-28 October I had a range of bilateral meetings with Bahraini interlocutors and covered many issues, including human rights.

Nigeria: Islam

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what information his Department holds on the number of protestors killed during demonstrations held by members of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria in Abuja in October 2018.

Harriett Baldwin: ​We are deeply concerned by reports that up to 50 people were killed in and around Abuja during protests by the Islamic Movement in Nigeria in October 2018. We have raised these concerns with the Nigerian Foreign Minister and the President's Chief of Staff, and welcome commitments by the Government of Nigeria to conduct a thorough investigation and to take appropriate action to hold accountable any member of the security forces held responsible for violations of Nigerian law. It is essential that security forces act in accordance with international law and work to protect civilians.

Nigeria: Trials

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of whether the recent trials of Ibrahim Zakzaky and his wife in Nigeria were conducted in line with international standards on the right to a fair trial as set out in (a) the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and (b) the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.

Harriett Baldwin: We have not made an independent assessment of the conduct of the trial of Ibrahim and Zeenat El-Zakzaky. The UK's response to the UN's Universal Periodic Review of Human Rights in Nigeria includes a recommendation calling on the Nigerian government to obey court orders for their release and to hold the perpetrators of the killing of 347 Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN) members in 2015 accountable. We will continue to make representations to the Nigerian authorities on the case.

Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will recognise the contribution of UK citizens to the OSCE mission by awarding them the CSDP medal; and if he will make a statement.

Sir Alan Duncan: The Common Security and Defence Policy Service (CSDP) Medal is an international military decoration awarded to individuals who have served with CSDP missions. The Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine is a separate mission outside the scope of the CSDP. UK citizens who serve in OSCE missions are not therefore eligible for CSDP medals. We fully support our secondees to OSCE with a package of benefits and remuneration for their work, and we continue to consider other ways to recognise our secondees’ service to this important Mission.

Afghanistan: Ethnic Groups

Andrew Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of trends in the level of violence against the Hazara people in Afghanistan; and what support the UK Government is providing to the Afghan Government to help protect the Hazara people.

Mark Field: We are concerned by reports of civilian casualties and displacement resulting from recent Taliban attacks in districts predominantly populated by Hazaras. We continue to monitor the situation closely, especially in Ghazni and Uruzgan districts. We understand that the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces (ANDSF) are working to stabilise the security situation in both provinces.The UK provides a range of support which aims to enhance the Afghan Government’s ability to protect all Afghan citizens, including minority ethnic and religious groups such as the Hazaras. DFID is a leading humanitarian donor and has contributed £42 million towards lifesaving humanitarian aid in Afghanistan this year. Through our contributions to NATO’s Resolute Support Mission, the UK is also committed to supporting the Afghan Security Forces to ensure their capability continues to improve in order to protect all ethnic and religious groups in Afghanistan.The British Government continues to urge all parties to the conflict in Afghanistan to respect international humanitarian law, protect the civilian population and facilitate the provision of assistance by neutral and impartial humanitarian agencies. We urge the Government of Afghanistan to protect the rights of all ethnic and religious groups, including the Hazaras, in line with the Afghan constitution.

Nigeria: Social Media

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment she has made of the effect of false information spread by social media platforms on perpetuating conflict in the Middle Belt in Nigeria.

Harriett Baldwin: We are concerned that false information on social media platforms is stoking longstanding rivalries and fuelling intercommunal violence across multiple states of Nigeria. False reports and images of gruesome attacks, often with no link to Nigeria, are regularly circulated as evidence of intercommunal violence, prompting reprisal attacks.We are working with international partners to support the Nigerian government in their strategic response, and encouraging them to address the complex causes of the violence.

Africa: Social Media

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps she is taking to support national governments in Africa to tackle false information and fake news on social media platforms.

Harriett Baldwin: ​We have no organised programmes helping African states with disinformation, although we would consider any specific requests for support.HMG communications experts already work in Posts across Africa, supporting proactive and reactive media and communications activity in African countries. Over the coming months, we will hire more communications specialists to provide greater resource for proactive communications and campaigns in Africa. Such campaigns could be used to help counter misinformation, where needed.The government is supporting BBC World Service to expand in Africa, including on digital platforms.

Cabinet Office

Government Departments: ICT

Jo Platt: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what framework is used by Government when deciding whether digital projects should be completed in-house or contracted out.

Oliver Dowden: There is no specific framework that government uses to decide whether a digital project should be completed in-house or contracted out. Government uses the principles of the HMT Green Book guidance, supplementary guidance (such as the Agile digital and IT projects), and the 5 case model to scrutinise the costs and benefits of different options to deliver a particular project, including management, commercial and financial aspects. When relevant, some of these options may refer to in-house provision whereas others may refer to outsourcing. The preferred option will be selected on the basis of value for money and capacity to meet the project objectives.

Offices: Wales

Ben Lake: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the Government has plans to close the office of the (a) Boundary Commission for Wales in Fitzalan Court, Cardiff, (b) Company Names Tribunal on Cardiff Road, Newport, (c) Estyn office on Keen Road, Cardiff, (d) Forest Research on Cefn Gethiniog, Powys, (d) Office for National Statistics on Cardiff Road, Newport, (e) Public Health Wales on Tyndall Street, Cardiff, (f) Wales Audit Office at 24 Cathedral Road, Cardiff (g) Wales Audit Office at North Wales Business Park, Conwy and (h) Wales Audit Office on Penllergaer, Swansea.

Oliver Dowden: Following consultation with the Government Property Agency who now manage the Cabinet Office estate, I can confirm that none of the locations referred to in the above question are owned or managed by Cabinet Office. The civil service is going through a fundamental transformation in the way that we work and deliver services, not least through advances in technology. The future civil service will be more efficient, more highly skilled and agile. We are working with departments to deliver our commitments within the Government Estates Strategy and to ensure that we make the best use of our Government Estate assets, including the office estates. We have a particular commitment to consider locations outside of London as identified through our Places for Growth programme.

Civil Servants: Surveys

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, when he plans to publish the results of the Civil Service People Survey 2018.

Oliver Dowden: Three Civil Service People Survey 2018 results products will be published shortly. These are: the Civil Service Benchmark Scores; Whitehall 18 Trends; and All Organisation Scores for the engagement index, engagement drivers, and 62 attitudinal questions.

Pay

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the change was in the median gross annual earnings for all full-time employees in (a) England, (b) Scotland, (c) Wales and (d) Northern Ireland between 2007 and 2017.

Chloe Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply and their response will be place in the Library of both Houses.



UKSA response 
(PDF Document, 68.61 KB)

Department of Health and Social Care

Public Health: Finance

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the percentage change has been in (a) total funding for NHS England and (b) the local authority public health grant in each year since 2014.

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of the health and social care budget was allocated to the local authority public health grant in 2018-19.

Steve Brine: The local authority public health grant provides funding for health services delivered through local authorities. However it is not the entirety of the funding nor spend for public health services. For example, in addition to the grant there is circa £1.2 billion ringfenced for NHS national public health services within the NHS mandate figures, as well as other Departmental expenditure on vaccines and on grant in aid to Public Health England. The following table shows the percentage change in total funding for NHS England and the local authority public health grant in each year since 2014:  NHS England funding increase %Public health grant increase %2014-153.6%5.0%2015-163.3%24%*2016-175.4%-2.2%2017-183.6%-2.5%**2018-194.6%-2.6%Notes:* End year allocation for 2015-16 including the transfer in October 2015 of funding from NHS England to local authorities for commissioning services for children aged 0 - 5.** Figures from 2017-18 includes funding retained by 10 Greater Manchester local authorities as part of a business rate pilot, not allocated via a grant. The total Department of Health and Social Care Departmental Expenditure Limit for 2018-19 was £128.4 billion. 2.5 % was allocated to the local authority public health grant in 2018-19.

Waste Disposal: Fees and Charges

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 12 October 2018 to Question 174604, whether he has made an assessment of the effect on public health of local authorities charging for the collection of garden waste.

Steve Brine: The Government has not carried out any assessments of the effect on public health of local authorities charging for garden waste collection. Local authorities are able to charge for garden waste collection and make local decisions on whether to levy a charge ideally in consultation with local residents.

Incinerators: Health Hazards

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has (a) undertaken and (b) made an assessment of the outcomes of studies produced by other bodies of the effects on (a) air quality and (b) human health of different sized waste incinerators.

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the effects on human health of waste incinerators situated in urban areas.

Steve Brine: Public Health England (PHE) funded the Small Area Health Statistics Unit, and King’s College London, to carry out a study to further extend the evidence base as to whether emissions from modern municipal waste incinerators affect human health. This study has considered municipal waste incinerators across England, Wales and Scotland, which varied in licensed throughput from 3,500 to 750,000 tonnes per year, and a number of which were located in urban areas. The study found that the amount of particulate matter people are exposed to from the emissions of different sized incinerators is very low. The first of a series of papers from this study was published on 22 November 2018. The paper ‘Fetal growth, stillbirth, infant mortality and other birth outcomes near UK municipal waste incinerators; retrospective population based cohort and case-control study’ is available to view at the following link: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160412018316398 The paper found no evidence of a link between exposure to particulate matter emitted from modern municipal waste incinerators as modelled from emissions data, or living close to modern municipal waste incinerators, and infant mortality, low birth weight, still birth or the other birth outcomes investigated. Further papers are currently under review at peer-reviewed journals and will be published once this process is complete. PHE’s position remains that well run and regulated modern municipal waste incinerators are not a significant risk to public health.

Surgery: Children

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to improve treatment for children after surgery.

Jackie Doyle-Price: Medical staff are responsible for the clinical care of the patient throughout their treatment. There are a basic set of expectations for nursing and medical care post-surgery which apply to children. For example, they must be anaesthetised by anaesthetists competent in its administration; be looked after by teams dedicated to their care, who have received the necessary training; and be cared for in an appropriate environment. This is all part of good quality care.

Social Services

Royston Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to publish the Social Care Green Paper.

Caroline Dinenage: We intend to publish the social care Green Paper by the end of the year.

Mental Health: Older People

Royston Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what funding the Government has made available to local authorities to support elderly people who are lonely.

Caroline Dinenage: The Department does not provide funding to local authorities for loneliness. However tackling loneliness at all ages is firmly on the Government’s agenda. On 15 October the Government published its first strategy to combat loneliness ‘A connected society: A Strategy for tackling loneliness – laying the foundations for change’. The strategy brought together the Government, local government, public services, the voluntary and community sector and businesses to identify opportunities to tackle loneliness and build more integrated communities.

Disability: Older People

Royston Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what funding the Government has made available to local authorities to support older people with a severe disability.

Caroline Dinenage: Funding for supporting the social care needs of older people with a severe disability is determined by individual local authorities in line with their responsibilities under the Care Act 2014. Individuals with very complex physical disabilities may be eligible for National Health Service continuing healthcare, which would be funded by the relevant clinical commissioning group. Councils will have access to £240 million extra this year for adult social care and £650 million in 2019/20 overall for social care.

Speech and language disorders: Children and Young People

Emma Hardy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans NHS England has to (a) work with commissioners, provider organisations and patients to identify metrics to indicate progression in children and young people with speech, language and communication needs and (b) support providers to collect and benchmark that data.

Emma Hardy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps NHS England is taking to ensure that the NHS long-term plan is informed by the findings of the Bercow: Ten Years On report, published on 20 March 2018.

Caroline Dinenage: The long-term plan being developed by NHS England, following the announcement by the Prime Minister in June 2018, will set out how the National Health Service will develop over the coming years, supported by the significant additional funding of £20.5 billion. This provides an excellent opportunity to consider how services for children and other services can be further improved over the next decade. The plan is currently in development and will be published later in the year. Detailed assessments of children’s speech, language and communication needs (SLCN) is being undertaken by Public Health England, who are developing a new national tool for health visitors with the Department for Education. Health visitors consider SLCN at the universal health review they undertake with children at two to two and a half years of age. This information is used by health visitors to help them decide if further, more specific assessments for communication and language development are required, in order to assess need and inform next steps. Annual data on child development outcomes at two to two and a half years for 2017/18 can be found at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/child-development-outcomes-at-2-to-2-and-a-half-years-metrics-2017-to-2018 Information on surveillance using child development outcome indicators is at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/population-surveillance-using-child-development-outcome-indicators

Stem Cells: Medical Treatments Abroad

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what guidance his Department provides to patients planning to travel overseas for stem cell treatment.

Jackie Doyle-Price: If a patient wishes to travel overseas for treatment they can find guidance for going abroad for treatment on the NHS Choices website at the following link: https://www.nhs.uk/using-the-nhs/healthcare-abroad/going-abroad-for-treatment/going-abroad-for-medical-treatment/

Dental Health: Children

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to encourage children to brush their teeth daily.

Steve Brine: Local authorities are responsible for providing or commissioning oral health promotion programmes locally. When asked in a recent survey 51% of responding local authorities’ programmes include supervised tooth brushing in early years and school settings; and 46% reported targeted provision of toothbrushes and toothpaste, further results can be found via the following link: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/707180/Oral_health_improvement_programmes_commissioned_by_local_authorities.pdf These activities are explicitly supported by Commissioning Better Oral Health a toolkit produced by Public Health England (PHE) and a toolkit supporting supervised tooth brushing programmes in early years settings. The report can be accessed via the following link:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/321503/CBOHMaindocumentJUNE2014.pdf ‘Delivering Better Oral health – an evidence-based toolkit for dental teams’ recommends that all children brush twice daily with fluoride toothpaste, this can be accessed via the following link: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/605266/Delivering_better_oral_health.pdf PHE’s health campaigns such as Change4Life, give advice on oral health which includes support for twice daily tooth brushing.

Dementia: Health Services

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to tackle dementia.

Caroline Dinenage: Dementia remains a key priority for the Government. We will implement the Government’s Challenge on Dementia 2020 (published in February 2015) in full to make this the best country to live in with dementia by 2020. Working with our partners, we continue to make progress against the ambitions set out in the March 2016 Implementation Plan which details how the commitments in the Challenge, across the four core themes of risk reduction, health and care, awareness and social action, and research will be met. We have undertaken a review of our implementation plan to reflect on what has been achieved so far and what more we need to do to achieve our goals by 2020. We will publish a revised plan by the end of the calendar year.

Pre-eclampsia

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what training is delivered to nurses to inform their treatment of pre-eclampsia.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The devolved administrations in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales are responsible for the training of staff working in the National Health Service in that country and the content of training curriculum. In England, all midwives receive training on the care of women with pre-eclampsia as part of the education programme they complete to become a registered midwife. Each nursing school sets its own curriculum. These have to meet the standards set by the Nursing and Midwifery Council.

Pre-eclampsia

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the number of people experiencing pre-eclampsia.

Jackie Doyle-Price: Hypertension or high blood pressure during pregnancy (known as pre-eclampsia) is the most common medical problem that is encountered in pregnancy. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance, ‘Hypertension in pregnancy: diagnosis and management’, is aimed at healthcare professionals and women who develop hypertension during pregnancy. The guidance aims to improve care during pregnancy, labour and birth for women and their babies. Most clinical activity relating to pre-eclampsia is focused on diagnosing the condition as early as possible and managing the condition when it has been identified. NHS England expects providers of maternity care to pay due regard to NICE guidelines on diagnosing and managing pre-eclampsia. These are set out at the following link: https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg107

Autism: Health Services

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many autistic children are in solitary confinement in assessment and treatment units.

Caroline Dinenage: This information is not collected centrally. We have asked the Care Quality Commission to undertake an in-depth review into the use of long term segregation and prolonged seclusion in health and care settings. Its recommendations will help to eliminate inappropriate restrictive practices and ensure that vulnerable people are provided with dignified and compassionate care.

Dental Health

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information his Department holds on the number of people experiencing gum disease in the last 12 months for which information is available.

Steve Brine: No information is available on the numbers of people with gum disease in the last 12 months. This information is usually collected every 10 years in the Adult Dental Health Survey. The last survey was carried out in 2009 when, in England, 54% of adults with any natural teeth had signs of gum disease.

NHS: Negligence

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much has been disbursed by the NHS in relation to medical negligence claims in the last five years.

Stephen Hammond: NHS Resolution handles clinical negligence claims on behalf of the National Health Service in England. The following table shows NHS Resolution spending on clinical negligence as managed through the Clinical Negligence Scheme for Trusts (CNST) for the last five years. Financial YearCNST spending on clinical negligence (£ billion)2013-141.12014-151.12015-161.42016-171.62017-182.1 Notes:The spending figures only cover spending specifically attributed to clinical negligence, principally pay-outs pertaining to CNST as managed by NHS Resolution plus associated administration costs, claimant legal and defence legal costs.The figures are for the NHS in England only and do not include any unrecorded costs, for example staff employed by trusts to deal with claims.The figures do not include the cost of clinical negligence claims in primary care as primary care funding includes an unspecified element for indemnity premia.The figures do not include clinical negligence pay-outs relating to Department-funded indemnity schemes in respect of legacy bodies such as primary care trusts and strategic or regional health authorities.

Diabetes: Children

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to tackle diabetes experienced by children to help ensure they live long lives.

Steve Brine: Preventing diabetes and promoting the best possible care for people with diabetes is a priority for this Government. NHS England is developing a diabetes management and care programme aimed at reducing variation and improving outcomes for people with diabetes. An additional £44 million Transformation Funding is being made available to support the delivery of the programme which will focus on four areas: reducing variation in the achievement of the three National Institute for Health and Care Excellence treatment targets, improving take up of structured education, improving access to multi-disciplinary foot care teams for people with diabetic foot disease and improving access to specialist inpatient support. 95% of children with diabetes have type 1 diabetes and there have been year-on-year improvements in care process delivery and in HbA1c reduction for this group. Further information is available in the National Paediatric Diabetes Audit at the following link: https://www.rcpch.ac.uk/sites/default/files/2018-07/npda_annual_report_2016_-_2017_april_2018_final_updated_2.pdf For children with type 2 diabetes, the Government is committed to halving childhood obesity by 2030, which was recently reiterated in the document ‘Prevention is better than cure’ published on 5 November. The upcoming National Health Service long-term plan will have prevention at its core and build on existing work to keep people healthy and well. Chapter 2 of the Government’s Childhood Obesity Plan also aims to tackle childhood obesity and outlines the actions the Government will take towards its goal of halving childhood obesity and reducing the gap in obesity between children from the most and least deprived areas by 2030.

Skin Cancer: Males

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to reduce cases of melanoma in men.

Steve Brine: Public Health England (PHE) has developed a range of Be Clear on Cancer advertising campaign resources, which raise awareness of the signs of skin cancer, and are aimed at people aged 50 and over. These are available on the PHE Campaign Resource Centre to a range of partners including the National Health Service, charities and local authorities. The PHE campaign resource centre is available to view at the following link: https://campaignresources.phe.gov.uk/resources/

Prescriptions: Fees and Charges

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many NHS prescription fines have been issued to people in (a) Easington constituency and (b) England in each of the last five years.

Steve Brine: The following table shows the number of penalty charge notices (PCNs) issued in England between September 2014 and October 2018. This data is not available at constituency level. YearTotal PCNs Issued201435,8122015408,4782016864,36620171,052,43020181,134,498 Note: NHS Business Services Authority assumed responsibility for the Prescription Exemption Checking Service in September 2014, so no data is held prior to this.

NHS: Tax Avoidance

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 24 October 2018 to Question 183335, if he will make an assessment of the effect on NHS staffing levels of the IR35 tax changes.

Stephen Hammond: As previously advised, all available evidence suggests that there has been no significant impact on the National Health Service of the IR35 changes. Recent HM Revenue and Custom research indicates that 58% of central public bodies have not had problems filling vacancies since the changes and 63% have not seen an increase in rates as a result. NHS Improvement has confirmed that there has been no significant impact on the NHS of these changes and as such, we have not made a formal assessment of the effect of these changes on the NHS. It should also be re-iterated that NHS Improvement continuously monitors the levels of staffing in NHS trusts to ensure they are able to prioritise patient care.

Phenylketonuria

Ben Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help raise awareness of Phenylketonuria.

Steve Brine: The current new-born screening programme in the United Kingdom screens for nine rare but serious conditions including phenylketonuria (PKU). To recognise rare conditions such as PKU, doctors and other healthcare professionals are expected to ensure their clinical knowledge remains up-to-date and to identify their ongoing learning needs as part of their continuing professional development. This activity should include taking account of new research and developments in guidance in relevant specialty areas, such as those produced by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence or the Royal Colleges, to ensure that they can continue to provide high quality care to all patients. Steps to increase the awareness of rare diseases such as PKU are being taken through the implementation of the UK Strategy for Rare Diseases. The Strategy includes commitments to improving the lives of all patients affected by rare diseases including in areas of identification/ prevention and diagnosis and early intervention. The Government is committed to implementing the Strategy’s commitments and in January 2018, the Department and NHS England published Implementation Plans setting out their actions for England.

Preventive Medicine

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 15 November 2018 to Question 188044 on Preventive Medicine, (a) what the definition of community services is and (b) which prevention interventions are covered.

Steve Brine: As set out in the Secretary of State’s recent ‘Prevention is better than cure’ vision paper, community health services are key to delivering effective preventative care. Community health services are physical health services delivered outside of acute hospitals usually in patients’ homes, clinics, community hospitals, schools and care homes. They are delivered by a range of health professionals including nurses, physiotherapists and occupational therapists. They deliver care through all stages of people’s lives. This ranges from health visitors keeping children under five healthy, physiotherapists helping patients regain movement and function, to nurses managing patients over 65 with co-morbidities to enable them to be treated as close to home as possible. They can improve people’s mental and physical health simultaneously by providing treatment based around outcomes important to individuals. Community health services deliver a broad range of preventative interventions including activities to prevent falls; to manage long term conditions such as diabetes to prevent complications such as blindness and amputations; and to help with weight management.

Mental Health Services: Finance

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the report entitled Fair funding for mental health: Putting parity into practice, published by IPPR in October 2018, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of the finding in that report that NHS mental health services require an increase in spending of at least (a) five per cent up to 2023-24 and (b) 5.5 per cent by 2030-31 to achieve parity of esteem.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Government recognises the need for additional investment in mental health services and the Institute for Public Policy Research report represents a valuable contribution to the debate. The Government announced its long term financial settlement for the National Health Service in June. This will represent an increase of £20.5 billion in real terms by 2023/24 and the chancellor has already announced that at least a further £2 billion of this will go to fund mental health, including expanding crisis services and supporting more people with severe mental illness into employment. The Government has asked the NHS to develop a long term plan which will set out a vision for the health service and ensure every penny is well spent. The Government has been clear that better access to mental health services, to help achieve the Government’s commitment to parity of esteem between mental and physical health, is one of the principles which must underpin the plan. Further details will follow when the plan is published in due course.

Disability: Children

Emma Hardy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to improve the quality of health and social care services for disabled children.

Caroline Dinenage: In 2014, the Government introduced a new statutory framework requiring local authorities and clinical commissioning groups to commission jointly services for children with special educational needs and disability, across health, social care and education. Since 2014, £327 million has been given to local areas to support implementation of these new arrangements, in addition to the high needs budget for placements for pupils with complex special educational needs. In addition to their role inspecting providers, Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission are jointly inspecting every local area’s arrangements. The inspections assess the effectiveness of joint arrangements by commissioners of health, education and social care to support children with special educational needs, with written statements of action required where improvement is needed. Improving wheelchair access for children has been included as a ‘must do’ in NHS England’s planning guidance for clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) for 2017/18 – 2018/19, which was issued in September 2016. Each CCG is required to set out improvement plans showing how they would halve the number of children waiting 18 weeks by Q4 2017/18 and eliminate 18 week waits for wheelchairs by the end of 2018/19. In April 2018, we announced investment of £1.5 million in child sports prostheses across 2018/19 and 2019/20 for the provision of child sports protheses and research. In 2019 we will be consulting on introducing mandatory learning disability training for health and care staff.

Breast Cancer: Drugs

Christina Rees: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of delays in drug supply chains on access to medicines for breast cancer patients in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal.

Christina Rees: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with pharmaceutical companies on stockpiling breast cancer medicines to prepare for the possibility of the UK leaving the EU without a deal.

Stephen Hammond: On 23 August 2018 the Department wrote to all pharmaceutical companies that supply the United Kingdom with prescription only or pharmacy medicines from, or via, the European Union/European Economic Area, asking them to ensure they have a minimum of six weeks’ additional supply in the UK, over and above their business as usual operational buffer stocks, by 29 March 2019 in the unlikely the event that the UK were to leave the EU without a deal. Since then, we have received very good engagement from industry who share our aims of ensuring continuity of medicines supply for patients is maintained and able to cope with any potential delays at the border that may arise in the short term in the event of a no-deal Brexit. We understand medicines for breast cancer patients are vitally important to many people in this country. However, the Department recognises that through its medicines supply contingency programme, it is requesting sensitive commercial information from pharmaceutical companies. To reassure participating companies, we have committed to treating all information received confidentially, securely and to using it only for the purposes of the Department’s programme. That means not introducing information about a company, specific medicine or their supply routes into the public domain.

Palliative Care: Children

Nicky Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has taken steps to encourage Clinical Commissioning Groups and local authorities to jointly commission (a) short breaks for respite and (b) other children’s palliative care services.

Caroline Dinenage: NHS England and the Department expects clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) and local authorities to work collaboratively to commission appropriate respite and palliative care services for children with life-limiting conditions, to make the most efficient and effective use of health and social care funding. NHS England’s ‘Choice Commitment for end of life care’ document recognises that children’s palliative care is particularly dependent on this good collaboration between clinical and non-clinical services across a variety of settings. NHS England has also provided support to CCGs in this area in the form of a joint NHS 10 Point Efficiency Plan with NHS Improvement. NHS England is also working with colleagues across the National Health Service and local authorities to ensure the health and care needs of specific patient groups, including children’s palliative care services, are planned collaboratively where appropriate. This includes working with commissioners, clinicians, voluntary, community and social enterprises, local authorities and people with lived experience to refresh the children’s palliative and end of life care service specification and the commissioning pathway to reflect collective responsibilities across health and social care. Work will continue on this until spring 2019.

Baby Care Units

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many neonatal units are able to provide parents with access to a trained mental health professional to support their mental health and wellbeing when their baby is born needing neonatal care.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The information requested is not available.

Baby Care Units

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much of the £365 million perinatal mental health fund has been allocated to the development of psychological support services in neonatal units; and how many neonatal units have benefited from that perinatal mental health funding.

Jackie Doyle-Price: All specialist inpatient and community perinatal mental health services commissioned as part of the Five Year Forward View for Mental Health transformation programme, which is backed by a £365 million investment covering the period from 2015/16 to 2020/21, are for women in the perinatal period with moderate to severe mental illness. This includes women accessing neonatal units. By April 2019, all clinical commissioning groups in the country will have at least one specialist community perinatal mental health service, and therefore all neonatal units will be able to draw on the expertise of the staff at these services. NHS England has also invested in multidisciplinary perinatal mental health clinical networks across the country to drive forward change, focusing on collaborative working to develop local, integrated pathways and support early identification of those at risk of mental illness in the perinatal period to enable better outcomes for women in all communities. Mothers with a baby in a neonatal unit and also accessing specialist perinatal mental health community teams are equally able to engage with the perinatal mental health care pathway. Further information about the pathway is available at the following link: https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/perinatal-mental-health-care-pathway.pdf

Hearing Impairment

Royston Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 7 November 2018 on Hearing Impairment, how much funding his Department has allocated to organisations that provide support to deaf people since 1 April 2018.

Caroline Dinenage: The Department has made no payments to any charities supporting people with hearing issues in the period between 1 April 2018 to date.

Mental Health Services: Children

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people aged under 18 years in (a) Lewisham Deptford constituency, (b) the London borough of Lewisham and (c) London have applied but failed to meet the threshold for child and adolescent mental health services treatment in each of the last five years.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The information requested is not held centrally.

Hospital Beds

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many acute hospital beds have been freed up as a result of the the extra £1 billion provided by the Chancellor for investment in adult social care in the Budget 2018; and if he will publish progress reports on freeing up such beds.

Caroline Dinenage: NHS England publishes monthly data on the number of National Health Service beds occupied by patients experiencing a delayed transfer of care which is available at the following link: https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/delayed-transfers-of-care/ The latest monthly data for September 2018 shows that delayed transfers of care accounted for 4,809 occupied beds per day. This is a decrease of 1,851 per day against the February 2017 baseline.

NHS: Property

Graham P Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the sale value of NHS property has been since Sir Robert Naylor's review of NHS Property and estates; and what recent estimate he has made of the sale value of NHS property due to be sold.

Stephen Hammond: The latest published data shows that National Health Service trusts, foundation trusts and the Department, including its arm’s-length bodies and wholly owned property companies, disposed of 301 surplus sites between April 2015 and March 2017, generating £439 million in receipts from unconditional sales. This data is available online, as part of Cabinet Office’s ‘Transparency Report: Government’s land and property disposals in 2015-16 and 2016-17’, published in April 2018 at the following link: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/697773/Transparency_report_Government_s_land_and_property_disposals_2015-16_and_2016-17__1_.pdf Similar data relating to the 2017-18 financial year will be published in due course. The Department annually collects data on properties owned by NHS trusts and foundation trusts which has been declared surplus and planned for future disposal. This collection does not include properties owned by the Department, its arm’s-length bodies and wholly owned property companies. Information reported directly by trusts show that as at 31 March 2018 the total declared market value of surplus and potentially surplus land was £260 million; however, many organisations were not able to provide figures due to data limitations, including commercial confidentiality. This data is available at the following link: https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/nhs-surplus-land/2017-18-england

Mental Health Services: Children

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure parity of esteem between children’s physical and mental health services.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Government is committed to moving towards parity of esteem between mental health and physical health services, ensuring that high quality mental health support is available for those that need it, in appropriate, safe settings. Funding for mental health services will grow as a share of the overall National Health Service budget over the next five years. Last year alone the Government invested over £1 billion in children’s mental health services, which will help ensure that an additional 70,000 children will receive mental health support by 2021. In December 2017, we published a joint health and education Green Paper, and will be rolling out new Mental Health Support Teams to provide early intervention support for mental health in and near schools and colleges, as well as piloting a four-week waiting time standard. The Government has asked the NHS to develop a long-term plan and has been clear that better access to mental health services, to help achieve the Government’s commitment to parity of esteem between mental and physical health, is one of the principles which must underpin the plan.

Mental Health Services: Children and young people

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that all children and young people referred to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services are seen within six weeks.

Jackie Doyle-Price: There is no general six week target for access to specialist National Health Service children’s mental health services. The Five Year Forward View for Mental Health is at the heart of Government plans to transform mental health services and a key part of this is ensuring a reduction in waiting times for key services. Following publication of the Five Year Forward view, the Government agreed the following waiting times and access targets with NHS England to be achieved by 2020/21:- For accessing ‘Improving Access to Psychological Therapies’ services 75% of referrals should be seen within six weeks and 95% should be seen within 18 weeks.;- For eating disorder services 95% of referrals should be seen within four weeks for routine cases and 95% of urgent referrals should be seen within one week; and- For the Early Intervention in Psychosis programme 50% of people experiencing a first episode of psychosis should start a National Institute for Health and Care Excellence recommended package of care within two weeks of referral, rising to 60%.We are on track to meet these targets, which are tracked on the Five Year Forward View dashboard. The Five Year Forward View can be accessed at the following link: https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Mental-Health-Taskforce-FYFV-final.pdf

Mental Health Services: Children and young people

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services are sufficiently staffed.

Jackie Doyle-Price: ‘Stepping Forward to 2020/21: The Mental Health Workforce Plan for England’ was published in July 2017 and sets the ambition to deliver 21,000 new posts across the mental health system, with the expectation that 19,000 of these places will be filled by staff employed directly by the National Health Service by 2020/21. The plan aims to increase the size of the mental health workforce, including the workforce for children and young people’s mental health services, through increased recruitment, improved retention and through development of new roles and ways of working to improve efficient use of the most qualified staff. All regions have developed and are implementing mental health workforce plans which include plans to expand the number of professionals working in children and young people’s mental health services.

NHS: Drugs

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what NHS England’s specialised commissioning drug spend was in (a) 2014-15, (b) 2016-17 and (c) 2017-18; what proportion of that spend was accounted for by the (i) top 10 highest spend drugs and (ii) top 20 highest spend drugs in each year; and if he will list the (A) top 10 and (B) top 20 highest spend drugs in each year.

Steve Brine: The 2014/15 specialised commissioning drug spend totalled approximately £3.0 billion. Top 10 and top 20 highest spend drug data is not available for 2014/15. The 2016/17 specialised commissioning drug spend totalled approximately £3.6 billion. The top 10 highest spend drugs accounted for approximately 28% of specialised commissioning total drug spend. The top 20 highest spend drugs accounted for approximately 42% of specialised commissioning total drug spend. The top 10 and top 20 highest spend drugs are listed in the attached document. The 2017/18 specialised commissioning drug spend totalled approximately £3.9 billion. The top 10 highest spend drugs accounted for approximately 28% of specialised commissioning total drug spend. The top 20 highest spend drugs accounted for approximately 43% of specialised commissioning total drug spend. The top 10 and top 20 highest spend drugs for 2017/18 are also listed in the attached document.



PQ195065 attached table
(Word Document, 19.11 KB)

NHS: Drugs

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much was spent on medicines included in the Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme (PPRS) in each year since 2010; what proportion of his Department’s budget was spent on medicines included in PPRS in each year of those years; and what proportion of NHS England's budget spent was on medicines included in PPRS in each year since 2013.

Steve Brine: The years 2010 to 2012 are fully covered by the 2009 Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme (PPRS). There is no available data of the aggregate net sales during this period as they were not collected as part of the 2009 PPRS. However, aggregate net sales covered by the PPRS in the 2014 scheme are available and published quarterly by the Department. The years 2014 to 2018 are covered by the 2014 PPRS, with full year data up to 2017 currently available. The aggregate net sales made in 2013 (the base year of the 2014 PPRS) is also available. The most recently data is as of August 2018, and was published in October 2018 and can be found at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pprs-aggregate-net-sales-and-payment-information-august-2018 The following table uses the published data mentioned above, and shows the aggregate net sales covered by the 2014 PPRS for the United Kingdom by calendar year. A ratio of 0.8 has been applied to the UK aggregate sales to calculate an estimate of the England aggregate sales. Aggregate sales covered by the 2014 PPRS  UK (£ million)England (£ million)20137,9016,32120148,3406,67220158,1736,53820168,0606,45020178,1986,530 The sales figures do not fully represent total costs borne to the Department or NHS England. They are gross of any payments received by the Department under the 2014 PPRS, and do not include costs such as wholesaler margin or VAT. As such no direct comparison should be made to budgeting totals. The following table shows the Department of Health and Social Care Departmental Expenditure Limit in financial years.  Department of Health and Social Care Departmental Expenditure Limit (£ million)2010/11100,4002011/12102,8002012/13105,2002013/14109,8002014/15113,3002015/16117,2002016/17120,6002017/18125,200 The following table show the levels of NHS England funding, by financial year. NHS England was created in October 2012, and its first full set of accounts was in 2013/2014.  NHS England Funding (£ million)2013/1493,9002014/1597,3002015/16100,5002016/17106,0002017/18109,800

Social Services

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many and what proportion of local health communities have implemented the High Impact Change Model23 for reducing delayed transfers of care in (a) March 2018 and (b) October 2018.

Caroline Dinenage: Information on the implementation of the High Impact Change Model (HICM) is collected through Better Care Fund quarterly reporting returns, in which Health and Wellbeing Boards (HWB) self-assess their progress towards implementing the HICM. The most recent information available is from Quarter 2, 2018-19 (July-September 2018) which shows the number of HWBs areas reporting at the ‘Established’ level (or better) for each of the elements of the HICM. The information for Q4, 2017-18 covering the month of March 2018 is also included in the following table: Q4, 2017-18Q2, 2018-19Early discharge planning109/150121/150Systems to monitor patient flow122/150129/150Multi-disciplinary/multi-agency discharge teams130/150131/150Home first/discharge to assess122/150120/150Seven-day service77/15089/150Trusted assessors80/15092/150Focus on choice103/150118/150Enhancing health in care homes114/150126/150

NHS 111

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of NHS 111 calls received clinical assessment at (a) March 2018 and (b) October 2018.

Stephen Hammond: Data regarding NHS 111 calls, including the proportion of calls triaged that are transferred to a clinician, is published online by NHS England at the following address: https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/nhs-111-minimum-data-set/ The following table shows the proportion of NHS 111 calls triaged and transferred to any clinician in March and October 2018. MarchOctober48.8%52.5%

General Practitioners: Attendance

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of patients had access to evening and weekend GP appointments at (a) March 2018 and (b) October 2018.

Steve Brine: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Department for International Development

Yemen: Casualties

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment her Department has made of the accuracy of the WHO's casuality statistics in Yemen.

Alistair Burt: The World Health Organisation (WHO) casualty statistics are the best UN data currently available. Because of the active conflict in Yemen fewer than half of health facilities are fully functional. The WHO data reflects civilian injuries and deaths reported through health facilities, therefore they represent a partial picture. The real figure is likely higher.

Palestinians: Overseas Aid

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether the Memorandum of Understanding between her Department and the Palestinian National Authority signed in 2015 has been extended; and if she will place copies of all ministerial correspondence with the Palestinian Authority amending that agreement in the Library.

Alistair Burt: A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between DFID and the Palestinian Authority (PA) originally in effect from July 2011 to March 2014 was extended to cover the period up to March 2016. This MoU set out the individual and shared commitments in the development partnership made between DFID and the PA during this time. DFID and the PA now sign MoUs annually, which oversee our programme of financial assistance to the PA. I will place copies of relevant ministerial correspondence with the PA in the Library.

Palestinians: Overseas Aid

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, when her Department last made an assessment of the Palestinian National Authority's adherence to the principle of non-violence set out in the Memorandum of Understanding between her Department and that authority; and if she will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: The Palestinian Authority’s (PA) commitment to the principle of non-violence is assessed as part of the annual Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) dialogue between DFID and the PA, and is kept under review throughout the year. The last MoU dialogue took place in May 2018. We continue to assess that the PA is committed to the principle of non-violence.

Palestinians: Overseas Aid

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, on what date her Department last made an assessment of the Palestinian National Authority's adherence to its human rights commitments set out in the Memorandum of Understanding between her Department and that Authority; and if she will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: As part of our assessment of the Palestinian Authority’s (PA) commitment to the Partnership Principles, DFID officials assess the PA’s commitment to respecting human rights and other international obligations. This was most recently done in May 2018 as part of a formal annual meeting with the PA. The full Partnership Principles assessment is not public but I am happy to share a summary of the most recent assessment which concluded that the Palestinian Authority continues to demonstrate a credible commitment to the partnership principles under increasingly fragile and volatile conditions. We are aware of the serious and concerning allegations made in the recent Human Rights Watch (HRW) report about human rights violations by the PA. We have immediately raised our concerns with the PA Ministry of Interior and continue to urge the PA to respect human rights, to ensure complaints of mistreatment or arbitrary detention are properly investigated and to continue to improve the performance of the security sector.

Roads: Accidents

Stephen Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Transport on reducing road fatalities across the world.

Harriett Baldwin: The Secretary of State for International Development, Rt Hon Penny Mordaunt, has not recently met with the Secretary of State for Transport to discuss the reduction of road fatalities across the world. However senior officials are working together across Departments as road safety is an identified shared priority. This year the Department for International Development extended its £4.5m funding to the Global Road Safety Facility (GRSF) with an additional £5.2m. We work closely with Department for Transport and Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) on this issue with DHSC matching our funding to GRSF.

Developing Countries: Educational Exchanges

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 21 November 2018 to Question 191463 on Developing Countries: Educational Exchanges, how many of the 60,000 teachers and school leaders will be from (a) the UK and (b) developing countries.

Harriett Baldwin: Of the 60,000 teachers and school leaders to be trained under the Connecting Classrooms through Global Learning programme (2018-2021), 50% will be UK teachers and 50% will be teachers from developing countries.

Developing Countries: Educational Exchanges

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 21 November 2018 to Question 191463 on Developing Countries: Educational Exchanges, how many of the 56,000 teachers trained in the connecting classrooms programme between 2015 and 2018 were based in (a) the UK and (b) overseas.

Harriett Baldwin: Of the 56,000 teachers trained under the Connecting Classrooms programme (2015-2018), 3,500 were UK teachers and the remainder were teachers from developing countries.

Department for Education

Children: Day Care

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to findings of his Department's Survey of Childcare and Early Years Providers, published 1 November 2018, what assessment his Department has made of the reasons for the loss of 8,800 childcare providers since 2016; and what steps his Department is taking to prevent further decreases in the number of childcare providers.

Nadhim Zahawi: Whilst the 2018 Childcare and Early Years Provider survey has shown a decrease in the number of providers since 2016, this has not impacted on parents being able to find a childcare place and, with the introduction of 30 hours, we had no reported sufficiency issues. Ofsted also publishes census data on the actual number of providers entering and leaving the market. Their latest published data based on registrations at 31 August 2018, confirms there is a downward trend in the number of providers registered with them, which primarily relates to childminders leaving the Early Years Register. Despite this, Ofsted’s official statistics confirm that the overall number of childcare places available has remained broadly stable since August 2012. They also show a small rise in the number of group-based providers in the most recent statistical period between 31 March 2018 and 31 August 2018. This information is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/childcare-providers-and-inspections-as-at-31-august-2018.

Primary Education: Exercise

Ben Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans he has put in place to ensure that every primary school child is able to undertake at least 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity a day.

Nadhim Zahawi: It is important that all children have the opportunity to engage in physical activity and sport in a way that interests them. We want all primary school children to do at least 30 minutes of the Chief Medical Officers’ recommended 60 minutes of daily physical activity at school. As part of our Childhood Obesity Plan we are promoting a national ambition that every primary school should adopt an active mile initiative, which can be a good way for schools to achieve this aim. We support primary schools to enhance their Physical Education (PE) and sport provision through the PE and sport premium, which we have recently increased to £320 million per year using money from the Soft Drinks Industry Levy. This money can be used to improve the PE, sport and extra-curricular activities offered by schools. Other initiatives to encourage increased physical activity by primary age pupils outside the school day include the department’s Essential Life Skills Fund and Sport England’s Families Fund. Both programmes support children from low income families to access opportunities to develop competence and confidence in their ability to be physically active outside the school day.

Teachers: Training

Emma Hardy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to ensure that the SEND focus group supporting the development of the early career framework for teachers includes an expert in speech, language and communication needs.

Nadhim Zahawi: The department is working closely with the teaching profession to develop the early career framework. Teachers and academics with expertise in supporting pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) are closely involved in the design of the framework. The framework will have at its centre approaches that support the needs of all pupils, including those pupils with the four areas of need set out in the SEND Code of Practice. We will continue to work with the sector, including individuals with expertise in speech, language and communication to develop the framework and will publish further information in due course.

Schools: Communication Skills

Emma Hardy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how his Department defines school readiness in (a) speech, (b) language and (c) communication skills.

Nadhim Zahawi: The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) statutory framework sets the learning and development requirements that all early years providers must meet to shape and use educational programmes to ensure that children learn and develop well, and are ready for school.The EYFS does not explicitly define school readiness; rather the 17 early learning goals (ELG) summarise the knowledge, skills and understanding that all young children should have gained by the end of the reception year, including with regard to speech, language and communication.The department is in the process of making revisions to the ELGs and to the approach to assessment and moderation in the reception year. These reforms are intended to free up teachers to spend more time teaching, interacting with and supporting children to ensure they are developing the rich vocabulary, skills and behaviours they need to thrive at school and in later life.

Communication Skills

Emma Hardy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he has taken to fund What Works and other research centres in (a) storing and (b) sharing evidence of interventions that support speech, language and communication.

Nadhim Zahawi: Between 2012 and 2018, the department funded the development and maintenance of a What Works virtual library of evidenced interventions to support children's speech, language and communication. This was funded through The Communication Trust. What Works helps practitioners and teachers find the most appropriate interventions for children and young people by providing a free and easily accessible overview of the evidence base for each intervention. In addition to this, we are investing £5 million in partnership with the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) to fund two rounds of an early years What Works fund. The fund aims to build and share better evidence on professional development that improves the learning and development of children from low-income families aged 0 to 5, particularly in early language, literacy and mathematics. The EEF is also running a trial of evidence-based home learning environment (HLE) support programmes in the North of England, focusing on supporting early language and literacy. The HLE trial will be a jointly funded project worth more than £5 million and is scheduled to run over three financial years between 2018 to 2019 and 2020 to 2021. The EEF has also received £137 million of grant funding from the government to produce and disseminate evidence on What Works to improve the academic attainment and other outcomes of disadvantaged children and young people. The EEF has funded and evaluated several projects that focus on improving the speech, language and communication of pupils in early years and school settings, and findings from these studies are published on the EEF website: http://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk. In November 2017, the department published an interactive What Works resource for those working with pupils and students with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), which provides information and evidence-based practice that can be effective for SEND support all in one place. The What Works resource includes research on interventions supporting speech, language and communication and is available on the SEND Gateway: https://www.sendgateway.org.uk/r/sen-support-research-evidence-on-effective-approaches-and-examples-of-current-practice-in-good-and-outstanding-schools-and-colleges, and: https://www.sendgateway.org.uk/resources.effective-sen-support-a-guide-for-senior-leaders-in-education-settings.html. We provided this information to enable schools to determine which strategies are most effective for the pupils they are supporting, depending on the specific needs of the individual pupil.

Adoption

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to increase the number of children being adopted.

Nadhim Zahawi: Decisions on adoption in England are made by local authorities based on children’s individual needs.In 2016 the government published ‘Adoption – A vision for change’ which set out how we intend to radically redesign the whole adoption system in England – the structures, systems and workforce – to ensure we have the foundations in place to build lasting change.We have enabled more children to be placed in stable homes earlier by requiring local authorities to consider a fostering for adoption placement wherever possible. We funded a significant growth in the use of innovative adopter-led matching through National Exchange Days and Adoption Activity Days. We have also introduced a new, quicker two-stage process for approving adopters.The result has been that the average time taken from entering care to a child being placed with their adopted family has decreased since 2012-13 by 7 months to 14 months in 2017-18. The children waiting in care with a placement order but not yet placed with adopters has dropped from 5,300 reported at 31 March 2013 to 2,760 at the end of 2017-18.[1]We are driving further improvements in local adoption recruitment, matching and support through the introduction of Regional Adoption Agencies. [1] https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/children-looked-after-in-england-including-adoption-2017-to-2018.

Alternative Education: Special Educational Needs

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 16 October 2018 to Questions 175942, 175943 and 175944, what information his Department (a) holds and (b) records by special educational needs primary need on children educated in settings other than a schools or awaiting a school place.

Nadhim Zahawi: The department collects the total number of children and young people with education, health and care (EHC) plans, including those educated in settings other than schools or awaiting provision from each local authority via the special educational needs survey (commonly known as SEN2) data collection. This collection does not include any information on the primary need of the child or young person. The department collects information in the alternative provision census on pupils attending a school not maintained by a local authority for whom the authority is paying full tuition fees, or educated otherwise than in schools and pupil referral units, under arrangements made (and funded) by the authority. This includes primary type of need for those with an EHC plan. Placement types are categorised as follows:Non-maintained further education provisionOne on one tuitionOther unregistered providerWork based placement

Free Schools: Greater London

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether his Department has made an assessment of the suitability of (a) the Hoo and (b) other alternative sites for the proposed Abacus Free School in Belsize Park.

Nadhim Zahawi: The permanent site for Abacus Belsize primary school has been purchased and the department now intends to submit a planning application for that site. Alternative sites in the area have been reviewed, including the Hoo, but were not found to be suitable. The department is no longer conducting a site search for an alternative site.

Teachers: Job Satisfaction

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to improve the morale of (a) teachers and (b) other education professionals.

Nick Gibb: The Government’s top priority is to make sure teaching continues to be an attractive and fulfilling profession, which is why my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education announced in March 2018 that the Department will be developing a new teacher recruitment and retention strategy. The strategy provides an opportunity to take a long-term look at the teacher workforce to determine how best to provide sufficient high-quality teachers. It will build on the work already being done to support the profession, including clarifying the accountability system, extending the induction period, increasing the support available to newly qualified teachers and providing tailored recruitment support for schools. The Department is working closely with the sector, teaching unions and professional bodies to develop this. Reducing workload is an important part of improving teacher morale. The Department has accepted the Workload Advisory Group recommendations in full and has confirmed its support to help reduce workload in schools. The workload reduction toolkit, published in July 2018, provides accessible materials, including practical advice, tools and case studies that school leaders, teachers and other staff can use to address workload issues in their school. This toolkit can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/workload-reduction-toolkit.More widely, schools and academy trusts as employers are responsible for the wellbeing of the staff they employ, including non-teaching staff.

Ministry of Justice

Reoffenders: Community Orders

Emma Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what plans he has to commence Section 151 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003; and if he will make a statement.

Lucy Frazer: There are no current plans to commence Section 151 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003, which allows courts, in certain circumstances, to use community orders for repeat offenders who would normally receive fines.Section 143(2) of that Act requires courts to treat previous convictions as an aggravating factor when sentencing. The Sentencing Council’s guideline on theft offences came into force in 2016. This guideline allows for the imposition of community sentences for shop theft in a wide range of circumstances. In cases involving significant persistent offending, the community and custodial thresholds may be crossed even though the offence otherwise warrants a lesser sentence.

Social Security Benefits: Appeals

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 20 September 2018 to Question 172598, if she will set a reasonable waiting time target for the hearing of cases by the social security tribunal.

Lucy Frazer: The Ministry of Justice recognises that there are delays in the Social Security and Child Support (SSCS) jurisdiction, which is the part of the tribunal system which deals with benefit appeals, and is tackling them by recruiting extra judicial office holders. We have appointed 225 medical members and 119 disability-qualified members have recently been recruited. The SSCS jurisdiction will also benefit from the fact that 250 fee-paid judges and 100 salaried judges are being recruited across tribunals more widely. In addition, we have recently launched a new digital service to enable speedier processing of appeals and provide a better service for all parties to the proceedings. Information on the new digital service can be found at:https://www.gov.uk/government/news/new-online-service-launched-for-pip-appeals.The Ministry of Justice is not planning to set a waiting time target for the hearing of cases by the SSCS jurisdiction. This is because waiting times fluctuate geographically owing to a number of factors including venue capacity, the volumes of benefit decisions made locally, the complexity of the case and the availability of panel members. Furthermore, the listing of appeals, including consideration of whether a hearing should be expedited, is a function of the Tribunal’s judiciary.

Special Educational Needs: Tribunals

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate his Department has made of the number of appeals made to the special educational needs and disability tribunal in each year since 2014; and how many of those appeals have found against local authorities in (a) Lewisham Deptford constituency, (b) London and (c) England.

Lucy Frazer: The case management system used by HM Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS) to administer the First-tier Tribunal, Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) does not record data by parliamentary constituency. The figures provided below are for the Borough of Lewisham. YearLEWISHAM appeals receivedAppeals determined at hearingDecision in favour of appellantLocal Authority (LA) decision upheld 2014 - 1532171162015 - 1650171342016 - 1751312742017 - 18 (*)4933331 YearLONDON appeals receivedAppeals determined at hearingDecision in favour of appellantLA decision upheld 2014 - 15784288252362015 - 16791301270312016 - 17823385343422017 - 18 (*)89144440242 YearNATIONAL appeals receivedAppeals determined at hearingDecision in favour of appellantLA decision upheld 2014 - 1531477886801082015 - 1637128837801032016 - 174725159914181812017 - 18 (*)567922982035263 * The annual statistics produced by the First-tier Tribunal (SEND) reflect the school year, i.e. from 1 September to 31 August. The annual statistics for 2017–18 will be published on 13 December 2018. The figures quoted above cover the period up to 30 June 2018. NoteAppeals are recorded as disposed of within the same time period. In SEND the tribunal hears appeals within 22 weeks of the appeal being registered. Therefore, disposal figures may be different from appeals registered in the period as hearings may not take place until the next reporting year.The tribunal reports a successful appeal if one part or all of the appeal is found in favour of the parent or young person. HMCTS’ manual data collection shows that 75% of appeals scheduled for a final hearing settle or concede prior to the hearing date with a decision at hearing not required.

Dangerous Driving: Sentencing

Liz McInnes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he plans to introduce legislation increase prison sentences for causing death and serious injury by dangerous driving in a (a) specific Bill or (b) as part of a Bill that has driving within its scope.

Rory Stewart: The government is committed to increasing the maximum penalties for causing death by dangerous driving and causing death by careless driving whilst under the influence of drink or drugs from 14 years’ imprisonment to life.We are currently considering the legislative vehicle for these provisions, taking into account the wider legislative programme and other proposals for safer roads, including those arising from the Department for Transport’s review of cycle safety.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Energy Performance Certificates

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many houses in the UK have an energy performance certificate of (a) E or lower and (b) D or higher.

Kit Malthouse: At the end of September 2018, the number of houses in England and Wales which had a valid energy performance certificate (EPC) rated at E or lower was 3,177,158 and D or higher was 8,169,369. Additionally, other types of domestic dwellings, including flats, bungalows and maisonettes, which had a valid EPC rated at E or lower was 1,229,051 and D or higher was 5,584,059.This information is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/energy-performance-of-buildings-certificatesEPCs for domestic dwellings in Scotland and Northern Ireland are a devolved matter.

Housing: Energy

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 19 November 2018 to Question 190338 on Housing: energy, how much Homes England plans to spend on increasing the energy efficiency of the existing housing stock over the next (a) five and (b) 10 years.

Kit Malthouse: Homes England are rightly focused at ensuring more homes are built where the country needs them most, and therefore have no specific commitments regarding energy efficiency of existing stock.However, this Government is firmly committed to raising energy efficiency in existing homes and has launched a number of initiatives to tackle this issue. In particular the Clean Growth Strategy aims to ensure that as many homes as possible will be upgraded to an Energy  Performance Certificate Band C by 2035, where practical, cost effective and affordable.

High Rise Flats: Insulation

Emma Dent Coad: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many high-rise blocks owned by local authorities and housing associations will have their cladding removed between 1 November 2018 and 20 March 2019.

Kit Malthouse: The Government will fully fund the removal and replacement of unsafe Aluminium Cladding Material (ACM) cladding systems on social residential buildings which are 18 metres and over and owned by councils and housing associations, with costs estimated at £400 million.The Building Safety Programme releases monthly data on the identification and remediation status of high-rise residential buildings with unsafe ACM cladding systems. As at 31 October 2018, 28 have finished remediation, 87 have started remediation, and 40 have a remediation plan in place. The latest data release is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/building-safety-programme-monthly-data-release-end-october-2018.The remediation of buildings with unsafe ACM cladding systems is a complex process. Remediation work involves addressing any issues with the exterior cladding system and broader fire safety systems for each building. All of this work takes time and varies considerably depending on the building structure, extent of cladding, and existing fire safety systems.

Regulator of Social Housing: Public Appointments

Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 19 October to Questions 178312, what the timetable is for the Regulator of Social Housing to advertise for the appointment of the additional board member; and what steps he is taking to ensure that social housing tenants are made aware of those posts.

Kit Malthouse: Recruitment for additional members to the Regulator of Social Housing Board will commence shortly. The posts will be advertised through a range of sources and will be promoted via our stakeholder networks.

Regulator of Social Housing: Public Appointments

Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many applicants were interviewed for the two new posts as Board Members of the Regulator of Social Housing in January and February 2018.

Kit Malthouse: A total of five candidates were interviewed for the most recruitment for Board members to the Regulator of Social Housing (then known as the HCA Regulation Committee).

Clarion Housing Group

Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 19 October 2018 to Question 178310, if he will ensure that as part of its In-Depth Assessment process the Regulator of Social Housing makes inquiries with tenants into their perception of the performance of a downgraded housing association before reaching a decision whether to upgrade that organisation.

Kit Malthouse: The Regulator of Social Housing operates independently within the framework set by legislation. The Regulator takes a co-regulatory approach, which means it regards board members as responsible for meeting the regulatory standards and demonstrating its assurance that the standards are being met. The Regulator publishes further information about its approach to regulation and In-Depth Assessments here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/698332/Regulating_the_Standards_April_2018.pdf.We are currently reviewing the regulatory system for social housing to ensure that, amongst other things, it protects and empowers tenants and have consulted on enabling the Regulator to take a more rigorous and proactive approach to consumer standards where necessary.

Homes and Communities Agency

Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 25 January 2018 to Question 123615, what opportunities were given to tenants and leaseholders of social landlords to provide evidence to the Tailored Review of the Homes and Communities Agency in 2016.

Kit Malthouse: During the Homes and Community Agency Tailored Review of the Homes and Communities Agency in 2016, there was an online call for evidence throughout the month of March in 2016 where the public was given the opportunity to offer responses online. As set out in the Annexes of the published review in total, there were 121 substantive responses from the public.

Clarion Housing Group

Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps the Regulator of Social Housing has taken since the departure of the chief executive of Clarion Housing Group to ensure that its repairs and housing management services for tenants do not deteriorate.

Kit Malthouse: The Regulator of Social Housing continues to monitor the level of complaints and referrals from Clarion tenants and will take appropriate action in the event that these indicate a breach of its standards that risks serious harm to tenants. We understand that Clarion have now appointed a new Chief Executive.

Housing Associations

Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the board of the Regulator of Social Housing will have a role in determining the threshold for the serious detriment test used to establish the governance-rating of housing associations.

Kit Malthouse: Under the Housing and Regeneration Act 2008, the Regulator may only intervene in the breach of consumer standards if there is a significant risk that, if no action is taken by the Regulator, the failure will result in a serious detriment to the tenants or potential tenants. The Regulator interprets the meaning of “serious detriment” to be when there is risk of, or actual, serious harm to tenants. The Regulator publishes further information about its approach to regulation here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/698332/Regulating_the_Standards_April_2018.pdf.As part of our review of the regulatory system for social housing we have consulted on whether “serious detriment” remains the appropriate threshold for enforcement action. We are considering responses to the consultation. The Regulator of Social Housing and other stakeholders including residents would have the opportunity to input on the detail of any proposals for change.

Social Rented Housing: Energy

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answers of 20 November 2018 to Questions 190336 and 190337, whether he has made an estimate of how much of the £4.8bn spent by social housing providers was spent on increasing the energy efficiency of (a) the housing stock and (b) houses occupied by persons in fuel poverty.

Kit Malthouse: The Department has made no such estimates.

Private Property: Parking

Mr Edward Vaizey: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether he plans to bring forward legislative proposals to tackle unauthorised parking on private property; and what support is available to people who wish to remove unwanted vehicles parked on their property.

Rishi Sunak: The Government is currently supporting Sir Greg Knight’s Parking (Code of Practice) Bill that is seeking to create a code of practice for the private parking industry. There are, however, no current plans to further strengthen powers to tackle unauthorised parking on private property.Landowners can manage parking on their land under the provisions of the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012. They may also employ a parking operator to undertake enforcement on their behalf.Councils currently provide the support to remove unwanted vehicles. They have a statutory duty to remove vehicles that are abandoned on any land in the open air, including on private land such as car parks. There is no statutory definition of ‘abandoned’, and it is for councils to determine whether any particular vehicle has been abandoned. Council officers may legally enter private land in order to investigate and remove abandoned vehicles.

Housing: Overcrowding

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many households were registered as statutorily overcrowded in (a) Lewisham Deptford constituency, (b) the London borough of Lewisham and (c) London in each of the last five years.

Kit Malthouse: The English Housing Survey publishes annual information on the number of overcrowded households in England. The latest information is in Table 1.20 of the English Housing Survey Headline Report 2016 to 2017: Section 1, Household Tables - https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/english-housing-survey-2016-to-2017-headline-report.Data is available from the UK Data Service ( https://www.ukdataservice.ac.uk/get-data) for users who wish to produce statistics on the number of overcrowded households in London. The English Housing Survey is a sample survey interviewing just over 13,000 respondents a year. The survey is not designed to provide data at local authority level.

Right to Buy Scheme: Females

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to protect women's eligibility for the right to buy discount in situations when they are not entitled to that discount due to their previous tenancy being entirely in their ex-husband or partner’s name.

Kit Malthouse: Where a married couple live together under a public sector tenancy, they individually accrue tenancy periods which count towards eligibility for the Right to Buy. This applies whether the tenancy is in both names; or if the tenancy is only in a single name. The accrued periods still apply individually if the couple separate or divorce. This is set out in Schedule 4 of the Housing Act 1985; and in the department's booklet for tenants: Your Right to Buy Your Home ; and in the guidance for landlords: Right to Buy - A Guide for Local Authorities.

Business Premises

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what support is available to social enterprises, start-ups, and co-operatives in town centres to provide suitable premises for manufacturing and retail.

Jake Berry: The Government announced Our Plan for the High Street at the Autumn Budget, a package of support for high streets and town centres. To provide upfront support for high streets we are cutting business rates by a third for up to 90 per cent of retail properties for two years, subject to state aid limits. We have also created a £675 million Future High Streets Fund to help local areas make their high streets and town centres fit for the future.As part of this package for high streets and town centres we will trial a register of empty commercial properties to help prospective retailers to find empty properties and help local stakeholders tackle fragmented ownership on their high street. We have also announced an ‘Open Doors’ pilot scheme to help match empty properties to community groups looking for space and announced a consultation on modernising planning rules to ensure that they support the transformation of the high street

Homelessness

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made the number of people made homeless in each of the last 18 months.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: My Department has published quarterly statistics on statutory homelessness and homelessness prevention and relief activities in England. The latest published statistics are from January – March 2018. My Department also publishes annual counts and estimates of people sleeping rough.The latest statistics can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-homelessness.

Public Libraries: Finance

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will meet  the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport to discuss local government funding for libraries and how the library taskforce can support councils to deliver library services.

James Brokenshire: The Government is committed to supporting a sustainable long-term future for public libraries in England. MHCLG is represented at the Libraries Taskforce and the Minister for Local Government, Rishi Sunak MP, attended on 30 October to discuss funding for libraries. My Department will continue to support the Taskforce’s work and meet with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

Local Government: Pensions

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how the governance arrangements of the Local Government Pension Scheme currently comply with the first Institutions for Occupational Retirement Provision Directive and the new Directive due to be implemented on 13 January 2019; and if he will place all correspondence on those Directives his Department has had with the EU Commission in the Library.

Rishi Sunak: The Government's approach to transposition of the two Institutions for Occupational Retirement Provision Directives for the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) reflects the fact that it is a statutory public service scheme. The appropriate response is therefore different than it is for other, trust-based schemes. Having taken legal advice, our view is that the current governance arrangements of the LGPS, set out in the LGPS Regulations and the broader suite of local authorities' statutory obligations, are sufficient to meet the objectives of the directive. The Department of Work and Pensions has led for the UK Government on negotiation and transposition of the directives with the EU Commission and any request to see correspondence with the Commission should be addressed to them.

Ministry of Defence

Iran: Tanks

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what his policy is on paying to the Government of Iran funds relating to the purchase of Chieftain tanks through International Military Services.

Stuart Andrew: It would not be appropriate for the Government to comment on this issue as it is the subject of ongoing litigation initiated by the Iranian Ministry of Defence and Support for the Armed Forces against International Military Services Ltd.

Armed Forces: Females

Giles Watling: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to open military roles to women.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The Secretary of State confirmed on 25 October that the Infantry and Royal Marines are being opened up to women. Those already serving in the Army can apply to transfer into infantry roles from December, and from January 2019 the Infantry and Royal Marines will be open to external applications from women.This fulfils the Government commitment to open up all combat roles to women and reflects an Armed Forces that is a modern and inclusive employer which maximises the talent of every individual Service person.

Armed Forces: Death

Martin Docherty-Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what procedures were in place prior to the 2016 Fatal Accident Act coming into force to brief military personnel and their families on the lack of a mandatory requirement for a Fatal Accident Inquiry in Scotland for military deaths.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: It has not been possible to establish what, if anything, military personnel and their families may have been told regarding the differences between the English and Scottish legal systems in the event of a death prior to the introduction of the Inquiries into Fatal Accidents and Sudden Deaths etc. (Scotland) Act 2016. We can advise that such information is not included in briefing for military personnel and their families should they have been deployed to Scotland post 2016.

NATO: Rapid Reaction Forces

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the UK's contribution is to (a) Very High Readiness Joint Task Force (Air) 2018, (b) Initial Follow-on Forces Group 30 2018, (c) Air Policing 2018, (d) Very High Readiness Joint Task Force (Air) 2019, (e) Initial Follow-on Forces Group 30 2019 and (f) Air Policing 2019.

Mark Lancaster: As a leading member of the NATO Alliance, the UK contributes fully across the whole range of Alliance activities, including Air Policing, Initial Follow-on Forces Groups (IFFG) and the Very High Readiness Joint Task Force (VJTF). For 2018 and 2019, our contributions to these are provided in the table below. In order not to prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the Armed Forces certain details are withheld.   Year20182019NATO Response Force 2018 (includes VJTF(A) and IFFG(A))For 2018 the UK committed fighter bomber and air defence aircraft to both the IFFG(AIR) and the VJTF(AIR).In addition the UK has provided airborne early warning, air-to-air refuelling and air transport capabilities at varying level of readiness to support the NATO Response Force.During 2019 the UK has committed to providing a similar level of capabilities at the same high levels of readiness.NATO enhanced Air PolicingDuring 2018 the UK deployed 4 Typhoon aircraft and a 150 strong Expeditionary Air Wing to Romania for four months to support NATO Air Policing in the south of SACEUR’s area of responsibility.In May 2019 the UK will conduct a four month deployment to the Baltic States to support NATO’s northern air policing mission. In addition they will support NATO’s air policing mission in Iceland during Q4 2019.

Patrol Craft

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to his Department's media release Defence Secretary secures ships to protect home waters, published on 22 November 2018, what assessment he has made of the manning liability associated with the decision to retain River Class patrol vessels in service.

Mark Lancaster: The Royal Navy would not release information concerning the detailed manning requirements for operational vessels as to do so would, or would be likely to, prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the Armed Forces. Batch 1 River Class Offshore Patrol Vessels have a complement of 44.

Department for Work and Pensions

Employment: Autism

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the effect of the Disability Confident scheme on the gap between the number of people in employment (a) with autism and (b) in the general population.

Sarah Newton: We have not made any assessment of Disability Confident on the autism employment gap. Disability Confident promotes to employers the many benefits of employing disabled people, including individuals with Autism and Neuro-diverse conditions. The scheme provides free information, advice and guidance to help them to do this. Over 10,000 businesses have signed up to the disability Confident scheme since it was launched in November 2016. The Disability Confident Autism and Neurodiversity Toolkit was developed with support from disabled people with neuro-diverse conditions, medical professionals and disability organisations such as Autism Alliance UK and Autism Plus. It is designed to help to raise awareness and understanding, within DWP and across the wider Civil Service, about Autism Spectrum Disorders and neuro-diverse conditions.

Employment: Autism

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to increase the rate of retention in employment of people with autism.

Sarah Newton: The Government is strongly committed to increasing employment opportunities for disabled people, including those with autism, and improving employment retention rates. We are working across Government and with local authorities, voluntary organisations and employers in the public and private sectors to achieve this. Help and support for people with autism includes: Disability Confident scheme, through which DWP is engaging with employers and helping to promote the skills, talents and abilities of people with autism and associated hidden impairment conditions. Disability Confident offers advice and support, to help employers feel more confident about employing disabled people. Over 10,000 businesses have signed up to the disability Confident scheme since it was launched in November 2016 Access to Work, which has a Hidden Impairment Specialist Team that gives advice and guidance to help employers support employees with conditions such as Autism, Learning Disability and/or Mental Health conditions. It also offers eligible people an assessment to find out their needs at work and help to develop a support plan. The Disability Passport ‘About Me’ which aims to encourage disabled claimants, including individuals with autism, to disclose their disability/ health conditions at the earliest stage to their Adviser, to improve communication and ensure reasonable adjustments are put in place. The passport is hosted on Autism Alliance’s website. The Civil Service has committed to support the Autism Exchange Programme, and my Department is working with Ambitious about Autism to provide work placement opportunities for young people. The number of working age disabled people in employment in the UK reached around 3.9 million in Q3 2018. This was an increase of 123,000 since Q3 2017, and an overall increase of 973,000 since Q3 2013, the earliest comparable figure.

Employment: Autism

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the steps that her Department has taken to provide  employers with the opportunity to acquire the skills and knowledge necessary to employ people with autism.

Sarah Newton: The Government is strongly committed to working with employers to improve their approach to employing disabled people, including those with autism. For example: The Disability Confident scheme is engaging with employers, offering advice and support to help employers feel more confident about employing disabled people. Over 10,000 businesses have signed up to the Disability Confident scheme since it was launched in November 2016 Access to Work has a Hidden Impairment Specialist Team that gives advice and guidance to help employers support employees with conditions such as Autism, Learning Disability and/or Mental Health conditions. It also offers eligible people an assessment to find out their needs at work and help to develop a support plan. The Disability Passport ‘About Me’ aims to encourage disabled claimants, including individuals with autism, to disclose their disability/ health conditions at the earliest stage to their Adviser, to improve communication and ensure reasonable adjustments are put in place. The passport is hosted on Autism Alliance’s website. The Disability Confident Autism and Neurodiversity Toolkit was developed with support from disabled people with neuro-diverse conditions, medical professionals and disability organisations such as Autism Alliance UK and Autism Plus. It is designed to help to raise awareness and understanding, within DWP and across the wider Civil Service, about Autism Spectrum Disorders and neuro-diverse conditions. We have not made any assessment of the effect of these policies and initiatives on employers’ skills and knowledge in respect of employing people with autism in particular. Overall, the number of working age disabled people in employment in the UK reached around 3.9 million in Q3 2018. This was an increase of 123,000 since Q3 2017, and an overall increase of 973,000 since Q3 2013, the earliest comparable figure.

Employment Schemes: Autism

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Work Choice support programme in helping autistic people to (a) find, (b) keep and (c) make progress in a job.

Sarah Newton: Work Choice was designed to help individuals whose needs cannot be met through other DWP employment programmes and who need more specialised support to find employment or to keep a job once they have started work. Work Choice referrals have now ended in all parts of England and Wales, and service delivery will end by 31 March 2019. The Work & Health Programme, which rolled out in England and Wales between November 2017 and March 2018, builds on lessons learnt from both Work Choice and the Work Programme. Work Choice performance data allows us to monitor both short job outcomes (employment lasting at least 13 weeks) and sustained job outcomes (employment lasting at least 26 weeks) where the tailored support assists participants in achieving these. Work Choice official statistics are published here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/work-choice-referrals-starts-and-job-outcomes-to-june-2018. Since 25th October 2015, Work Choice participants could voluntarily declare to their Work Coach that they had an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), to allow providers to recognise their support requirements. A declaration of autism was recorded separately from individuals’ primary health condition. As these declarations are voluntary, we cannot be sure that they account for all Work Choice participants with ASD. For participants who have declared this information, the below data table shows the number of starts per year and the proportion of these starts that have since achieved a short job outcome (employment lasting at least 13 weeks) and a sustained job outcome (employment lasting at least 26 weeks). These data are a subset of the official Work Choice statistics.  Individuals who declared autism Number of startsOf which have achieved a short job outcomeOf which have achieved a sustained job outcome  Latest year available: Jul-17 to Jun-18 (for starts)670Jul-16 to Jun-17 (for short job outcomes)1,12043038%  Jul-15 to Jun-16 (for sustained)530  14026%  Financial years: 2015/16 (Nov to Mar)29012044%8027%2016/171,09042038%  2017/18940 Source: Provider Referrals and Payments system (PRaP) Notes:- Work Choice performance data for a particular cohort of starts are only comparable once we have given sufficient time from the end of that period for all of the starts to have received the tailored support from the programme and to have achieved the job outcomes. This means that the latest available data for numbers of starts is July 2017 to June 2018, for short job outcome rates is July 2016 to June 2017, and for sustained job outcome rates is July 2015 to June 2016. - The definition of short job outcomes changed slightly in November 2015. Therefore, short job outcome rates are not available for the July 2015 to June 2016 cohort and for the 2015/16 financial year they are only available from November 2015 to March 2016. - Figures are rounded to the nearest ten.

Employment Schemes: Autism

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the effect of the Specialist Employability Support programme on the employment outcomes of autistic people.

Sarah Newton: Specialist Employability Support (SES) is a pan-disability employment programme providing specialist personalised employment support for around 1,700 participants with complex barriers to employment, including Autism Spectrum Disorders, each year. Individuals with autism may request that specific referral opportunities are used for their referral to SES, to allow providers to recognise their support requirements. The Government confirmed in ‘Improving Lives, The Future of Work, Health and Disability’, published in December 2017, that it is currently exploring the best policy options for continuing to support those with greatest needs and most complex situations, once the SES contracts come to an end. We have not made any formal assessment of SES programme including on the employment outcomes of autistic people but we continue to gather information and evidence including lessons learnt for developing our future support. DWP has recently completed negotiations with SES providers to extend referrals to the programme to end 2019 to ensure continuous provision for this customer group whilst future support is put in place. The number of working age disabled people in employment in the UK reached around 3.9 million in Q3 2018. This was an increase of 123,000 since Q3 2017, and an overall increase of 973,000 since Q3 2013, the earliest comparable figure.

Employment Schemes: Autism

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to help young people diagnosed with autism into work in (a) Bristol and (b) the UK.

Sarah Newton: Jobcentre Plus partnership managers work with a range of organisations across Bristol to ensure we can hear the voice of the customer and to work collaboratively to address and remove barriers to employment. Throughout the country, Jobcentre Plus Work Coaches offer people with disabilities and health conditions, including autism, tailored support to reduce barriers to work and help them into work. Work Coaches are trained in dealing with customers with a range of conditions, including autism, and have access to a range of resources, including an autism learning toolkit, free online courses, training for managers, guidance on reasonable adjustments, and employer guides. Work Coaches are supported by Disability Employment Advisers and DWP Work Psychologists, who can also directly support customers, and advised by Community Partners, who have a lived experience or expert knowledge of disability. Nationally, there is a range of support available for young people with autism, including: The Work and Health Programme, which offers a personalised local approach to supporting people, overcome barriers to employment, by targeting specialist support to those who are likely to be able to find work within 12 months. Access to Work, which has a Hidden Impairment Specialist Team offers advice and guidance to help employers support employees with conditions such as Autism, Learning Disability and/or Mental Health conditions. Young people who start a work placement with an employer as part of the Department for Education supported internship programme or a Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy traineeship are eligible to apply for Access to Work support for the period of the work placement. Supported internships are for young people aged 16—24 with learning difficulties or learning disabilities, who want to get a job and need extra support to do this. The Disability Confident scheme, though which DWP is engaging with employers and helping to promote the skills, talents and abilities of people with autism and associated conditions. Over 10,000 businesses have signed up to Disability Confident since it was launched in November 2016. The Disability Passport ‘About Me’, developed to encourage disabled claimants, including individuals with autism, to disclose their disability/ health conditions at the earliest stage to their Adviser, to improve communication and ensure reasonable adjustments are put in place. The passport was launched in March 2017 and is hosted on Autism Alliance’s website The Local Supported Employment Proof of Concept, which is being delivered with nine local authorities and will support those with a learning disability or autism who are known to adult social care, or those in contact with secondary mental health services. We are also improving access to apprenticeships for people with learning disabilities and difficulties. For example, the government has introduced legislation which adjusts the minimum English and Maths requirements for apprenticeships for people with a learning difficulty or disability to entry Level 3. This change allows more people to benefit from the opportunities available through apprenticeships and work.

Self-employed

Ruth George: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to people who are in seasonal self-employment and are also employed, whether the minimum income floor will apply to their self employed income when they are not in employment even if their average income is over the minimum income floor when their employed income is included.

Alok Sharma: Universal Credit supports people in self-employment. For those claimants in established gainful self-employment, we apply an assumed level of monthly earnings, the Minimum Income Floor. Where a claimant’s combined self-employment and employment income is above the Minimum Income Floor, Universal Credit is based on their actual earnings. If claimants are not gainfully self-employed then the Minimum Income Floor does not apply. Autumn Budget 2018 extended the 12-month grace period before the Minimum Income Floor applies to all gainfully self-employed people, giving claimants time to grow their businesses to a sustainable level. This will be introduced from July 2019 and implemented fully from September 2020.

Employment Schemes: Older People

Royston Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to encourage older people to participate in the workforce.

Alok Sharma: The number of older workers in employment is at a record high. There are now 10.3 million people aged 50 and over in the workforce.To support Fuller Working Lives, the Government has removed the Default Retirement Age meaning most people can choose when to retire, and extended the right to request flexible working to all employees with 26 weeks’ continuous service with their employer.In February 2017, the UK Government published “Fuller Working Lives: a partnership approach” to set out the role employers, individuals and Government can play in supporting fuller working lives. This is available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/587654/fuller-working-lives-a-partnership-approach.pdf

Universal Credit: Disqualification

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will give universal credit work coaches greater autonomy over whether to apply sanctioning guidelines to a claimant when they consider that a sanction would hinder that person's ability to (a) engage further with Jobcentre Plus and (b) gain employment.

Alok Sharma: Work coaches do not apply sanctions. Sanctions decisions are made by decision makers. Work coaches are required to set commitments that are tailored to individual circumstances, and to make referrals to a decision maker for consideration of a sanction where it appears that someone has failed to comply without good reason. In doing so, the claimant is asked to provide information they wish to be taken into account, for example, their reason for failing to attend an appointment with their work coach. A sanction is then only applied if the claimant does not show good reason for their failure to comply, and is applied according to current legislation and case law.

Social Security Benefits: Disqualification

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will review the (a) purpose, (b) merits and (c) economic and health effects of sanctioning social security claimants in receipt of an out-of-work benefit.

Alok Sharma: The Department has no plans at present to carry out a review of conditionality and sanctions policies for legacy benefits which will be phased out. Sanctions are only used in a small percentage of cases, and that is when people fail to meet their agreed commitments without good reason. When considering whether a sanction is appropriate, a Decision Maker will take all the claimant’s individual circumstances, including any health conditions or disabilities and any evidence of good reason, into account before deciding whether a sanction is warranted.

Social Security Benefits

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 18 September 2018 to Question 172595, what plans she has for the legacy benefit IT systems when the roll-out of universal credit is completed.

Alok Sharma: We regularly review all legacy benefit systems and for those which may no longer be required as a result of the completion of the UC roll-out, work will be undertaken to decommission them.

Social Security Benefits: Easington

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many benefit sanctions have been issued to Easington constituents in receipt of (a) jobseekers allowance, (b) employment and support allowance and (c) universal credit in each of the last five years.

Alok Sharma: The available information on Jobseeker’s Allowance, Employment and Support Allowance, Income Support and Universal Credit sanction decisions by parliamentary constituency is published and can be accessed at: https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/Guidance on how to extract the information required can be found at:https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/Getting-Started.html The Department publishes quarterly statistics on sanctions, including a breakdown by sanction referral reason, as part of the Benefit Sanction Statistics publication:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/jobseekers-allowance-sanctions We take a number of steps to make sure our decisions are fair. When considering whether a sanction is appropriate, a Decision Maker will take all the claimant’s individual circumstances, including any health conditions or disabilities and any evidence of good cause, into account before deciding whether a sanction is warranted.

Social Security Benefits: Medical Examinations

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to ensure confidentiality of medical information handled by contracted employment support allowance and personal independence payment assessors.

Sarah Newton: The contracts for the Departments Health Providers who are assessing the needs of claimants for Employment and Support Allowance and Personal Independence Payment include strict confidentiality clauses for the protection of personal medical information. The highest priority is placed on confidentiality, protecting the information the Health Providers hold about claimants securely. The Health Providers have detailed and strictly enforced policies relating to data protection and records management to ensure that the data they hold is dealt with in accordance with the requirements of the contracts.

Universal Credit: Telephone Services

Margaret Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average waiting time is for a person calling the universal credit helpline to be connected to an agent.

Alok Sharma: Holding answer received on 26 November 2018



Universal Credit is a 24 hour, seven day a week digital service that allows claimants to check their Universal Credit benefit payments, notify us of changes and record notes via an online journal facility. We also see claimants regularly face-to-face in jobcentres and they can contact us via the telephone outside of these appointments. In addition, this summer we introduced a new approach where established claimants who call the Universal Credit helpline are connected directly to the person or team who are dealing with the case. The average waiting time for a person calling the Universal Credit Full Service helpline in the month of October 2018 was 3 minutes and 58 seconds. Our Average Speed of Answer (ASA) measure is the average customer wait time from the point of entering a queue to connection to an agent. This excludes any time spent in pre-queue messaging and any wait time for calls ultimately abandoned by callers prior to answer. Notes: Data Source: BT - OPMIS and Historical Management Information (GI2 – HMI)Outsourced partner data is included.The data supplied is derived from unpublished management information, which was collected for internal Departmental use only and has not been quality assured to National Statistics or Official Statistics publication standard. The data should therefore be treated with caution.

Funeral Payments: Overpayments

Ruth George: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many overpayments of funeral payments her Department has recovered in 2018.

Ruth George: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many overpayments of funeral payments her Department recovered in 2017.

Ruth George: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many overpayments of funeral payments her Department recovered in 2016.

Ruth George: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many overpayments of funeral payments her Department recovered in 2015.

Justin Tomlinson: We make low-cost funeral expense payments to people who receive (or whose partners receive) a qualifying benefit or Tax Credit. These are recoverable from the estate of the deceased, where possible, but we write most of them off as often there aren’t enough assets in the estate. Debt Management can also recover any Funeral Expenses Payments that were paid incorrectly; e.g. where a payment was made as a result of a qualifying benefit being claimed incorrectly either as a result of claimant error or fraud. Whilst DWP does hold data regarding this type of overpayment the numbers are low, less than 15 in total for the period requested.

Universal Credit

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions,  what the number and proportion is of Universal Credit claimants who repaid an advance payment in the most recent month for which data is available.

Alok Sharma: Our latest internal data on the proportion of eligible UC Full Service claims that repaid an advance payment in Sep 2018 showed 41% (370,000 claims, rounded to the nearest 10,000).

Universal Credit

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the number and proportion is of universal credit claimants who had a deduction to repay a benefit overpayment in the most recent month for which data is available.

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the number and proportion is of universal credit claimants who had a deduction to repay housing arrears in the most recent month for which data is available.

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of universal credit claimants who had a deduction to repay housing arrears in the most recent month for which data is available.

Justin Tomlinson: The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has a duty to protect public funds and an obligation to ensure that, in accordance with social security legislation, any overpayment of benefit resulting from claimant error or fraud is recovered. I can confirm that there were 92,760 Universal Credit claimants who had a deduction from their Universal Credit as a recovery against a benefit overpayment within October 2018. Housing costs are defined in two ways:Owner-occupier service charges andRent, including service charges The information on (a) is not readily available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost. The latest available data is for eligible claims to UC Full Service that are due a payment in September 2018. Of these claims, 5% have a deduction from their standard allowance to repay rent arrears. This equates to 45,000 claims (rounded to the nearest 1,000).

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Wild Boar: African Swine Fever

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to prevent African swine fever in wild boar entering the UK.

George Eustice: Defra has robust contingency plans in place to respond to outbreaks of disease such as African swine fever (ASF) and these plans are regularly tested. The disease control measures are set out in the Great Britain African and Classical swine fever control strategy.   In response to the spread of ASF in Eastern Europe, and confirmation of the disease in feral pigs in Belgium, Defra’s risk assessment level has been raised to medium. This has been widely communicated to the industry and pig keepers. Disease control measures put in place in affected countries in Europe should ensure that no live pigs or wild boar, meat or products reach the UK through legal trade. It is already illegal to import any wild boar into the UK.   An ongoing communications campaign organised by Defra, the Scottish Government, Welsh Government, and DAERA in Northern Ireland, together with the pig industry and veterinary bodies, has been raising awareness of the risks of the introduction of ASF to the UK. Messages have been communicated using a variety of channels and have targeted key audiences, including all pig keepers, smallholders, vets, slaughterhouses, hunters and transport operators. These included measures that pig keepers can take to protect their pigs, reminding them of the ban on swill feeding, reporting clinical disease promptly, not allowing people on farm who have had a history of recent travel to ASF affected areas, as well as the risks posed by personal imports of meat from these areas.   Hunters and hauliers were also reminded to clean their equipment and vehicles before returning to the UK from affected countries to help prevent the spread of ASF, not just to the UK, but also to other EU countries. Other messages and signs have been targeted at the public more widely.

Farmers

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has assessed the economic effect on farmers of articles 40 to 46 and 92 to 97 of the Government's EU withdrawal agreement.

George Eustice: The Government is undertaking a wide range of continuing analysis in support of our negotiations and preparations for leaving the EU. We will ensure that Parliament is presented with appropriate analysis ahead of the vote on the final deal, and in Impact Assessments accompanying legislation, where appropriate.

Potatoes: Sales

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Farmers' Guardian article Major seed potato market could be killed off with no-deal Brexit, published on 13 August 2018, what information his Department holds on the legality of selling sell seed potatoes to EU countries after March 2019 in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal.

George Eustice: The Government is committed to pursuing a negotiated outcome which maintains our ability to export all seed to the EU and recognises that this issue is of particular concern for the seed potato industry. However, it is our duty as a responsible Government to prepare for all eventualities, including no deal, until we can be certain of the outcome of those negotiations.  The EU has stated in its Preparedness Notice for plant reproductive material that, in a no deal scenario, UK seed of all species will be subject to its equivalence requirements for third countries. This means that UK seed will not be marketable in the EU until the EU recognises UK processes as equivalent. Defra, with input from the devolved administrations, has made an initial application to the EU Commission for third country equivalence. More detailed information is being prepared in anticipation of discussion with the EU shortly. If approved, this would allow UK exports of seed potatoes to continue as they do now.

Solid Fuels: Heating

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether a comparative assesssment of the PM2.5 emissions generated per kwh for each fuel type is being made in his consultation on the cleaner domestic burning of solid fuels and wood; and if he will make a statement.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Government will take into account all factors that need to be considered in regulating the sale of the most polluting fuels. This includes the energy content of the fuels, the air quality benefits, and the impacts on business and households of switching to cleaner fuels. The useful heat output of fuel (in Kilowatt hours) is dependent upon the appliance used, and therefore it would not be appropriate to assess PM2.5 emissions by kilowatt hour for a specific fuel.

Bovine Tuberculosis Strategy Review

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Godfray Review into the Government's Bovine TB Policy, published on 13 November 2018, what steps his Department plans to take to implement the findings of that Review.

George Eustice: As set out in my written statement of 13 November 2018 (HCWS1077), the Government will consider the Review recommendations carefully and a formal response will be published in due course.

Potatoes: Imports

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the level of risk of diseased potato importation into the UK as a result of the UK leaving the EU.

David Rutley: Our plant health biosecurity arrangements currently protect UK businesses and the environment from pests and diseases, including those related to potatoes, and we will continue to protect the nation’s plant health biosecurity during and after our departure from the EU. Our work to prepare for leaving the EU will ensure that our high biosecurity standards will continue to be met in ways that support trade and the smooth flow of goods.

Air Pollution: Death

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 16 February 2018 to Question 126648 on Air Pollution: Death, by what year the target of reducing early deaths resulting from air pollution by half is projected to be achieved.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The UK has set stringent targets to cut emissions to air by 2020 and 2030 of five pollutants; Particulate Matter, ammonia, nitrogen oxides, non-methane volatile organic compounds and sulphur dioxide. We consulted on our Clean Air Strategy earlier this year which set out proposed actions to meet these targets, and thus, to reduce the harm to human health from air pollution by half by 2030. Our final Clean Air Strategy will be published shortly.

Food: Prices

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the potential change in retail food prices as a result of the UK leaving the EU.

David Rutley: Food prices depend on a range of factors, including commodity prices, currency exchange rates, and oil prices. This will continue to be the case when we leave the EU.   Whilst the Government does not directly control these factors, we work closely with industry to provide transparency for consumers, and play an important role internationally in promoting open global markets. This includes participation in the G20 initiated Agricultural Markets Information System (AMIS) which helps to enhance food market transparency and encourages international policy coordination This all helps to create a competitive domestic market so that producers and retailers can offer the best prices.

Food Supply

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the most recent Food Production to Supply Ratio is for (a) all food and (b) indigenous food; and what comparative assessment he has made of that production to supply ratio over the last five years.

David Rutley: The UK’s current production to supply ratio is 60% for all food and 75% for indigenous-type foods. This has remained steady over the last decade and is not low in the context of the past 150 years. For example, in the 1930s the overall rate was between 30% and 40%, while in the late 1950s this had risen to just over 50%. Below is an outline of the production to supply ratio over the last five years. The data is published and available on the gov.uk website:   https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/food-statistics-pocketbook/food-statistics-in-your-pocket-global-and-uk-supply   UK Food Production to Supply Ratio2017 2016201520142013All Food %60 60616260Indigenous type Food %7576767673

Food Supply

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the UK food self-sufficiency level has been in each of the last 10 years; and what projections he has made for future years.

David Rutley: The production to supply ratio for food is commonly described as a measure of ‘self-sufficiency’. The ratios for all food and indigenous type food for the last ten years are presented below. The UK’s current production to supply ratio is 60% for all food and 75% for indigenous-type foods. This has remained steady over the last decade and is not low in the context of the past 150 years. For example, in the 1930s the overall rate was between 30% and 40%, while in the late 1950s this had risen to just over 50%.   The supply of food available for domestic consumption consists of home production and food imports, excluding food exported. Defra does not make forecasts for future years: supply is affected both by growing conditions and export successes.   A related measure to production/supply ratio is the origins of domestic consumption. This is a breakdown of where the supply of food comes from. In 2017 50% of UK supply was home produced, 30% came from the EU and 20% from the rest of the world.   Production to supply ratio 2008-2017  2008200920102011201220132014201520162017All food %60596164636062616060Indigenous type food %73727578777376767675  Note: based on the farmgate value of raw food production

Common Agricultural Policy

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential economic effect on rural communities of the UK's withdrawal from the Common Agricultural Policy.

George Eustice: The government is undertaking a wide range of analysis in support of our EU exit negotiations and preparations. We will ensure that Parliament is presented with appropriate analysis ahead of the vote on the final deal, and in impact assessments accompanying legislation, where appropriate.   On leaving the EU, the UK will have an independent trade policy and a new agriculture policy to replace the Common Agricultural Policy. As a result, the impact of the UK’s leaving the EU on rural communities will depend not just on the shape of a UK-EU trade agreement but also on the government’s future trade and agriculture policies.

Common Agricultural Policy

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential economic effect on coastal communities of the UK's withdrawal from the Common Fisheries Policy.

George Eustice: Whilst no specific assessment has been carried out on the potential economic impact of leaving the Common Fisheries Policy, the Government’s White Paper on Sustainable Fisheries for Future Generations sets out our vision for the fishing fleet and the coastal communities that it supports. This includes seeking to secure increased fishing opportunities through the annual fisheries negotiations and moving away from relative stability towards a fairer and more scientific method for future TAC (total allowable catch) shares as a condition of future access.

Home Office

International Corruption Unit: Expenditure

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the annual budget for the National Crime Agency's International Corruption Unit has been in each of the last three years.

Mr Ben Wallace: The annual budget for the National Crime Agency’s International Corrup-tion Unit was £3.09 million in 2015/16, £4.72 million in the 2016/17 and £5.36 million in 2017/18.In addition to Department for International Development funding, the NCA significantly enhances the International Corruption Unit’s capability by the use of NCA funded resources across all areas of business both in the UK and overseas. It is not possible to quantify this additional funding from across the NCA.

Ivory: Seized Articles

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reasons there has been a decline in average quarterly seizures of ivory in the last four years; and if he will make a statement.

Caroline Nokes: The volume of seized commodities, such as ivory, sometimes fluctuates between years due to a few large volume seizures in previous years.Border Force continues to work closely and dynamically with the police and the National Wildlife Crime Unit to control illegal imports and exports of ivory and respond to emerging threats. It is also working innovatively with the National Association of Valuers and Auctioneers (NAVA) to facilitate the surrender of ivory to Border Force for destruction where its provenance cannot be establishedBorder Force Transparency Data figures (2014-2017) shows that the number of seizures made have increased from 40 seizures in 2014 through to 176 seizures in 2017.

Asylum: Children

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans he has to review the restriction on the ability of unaccompanied asylum-seeking children to sponsor the visas of adult relatives for the purposes of family reunion.

Caroline Nokes: There is currently no provision in the Immigration Rules for children with refugee status in the UK to sponsor family members to join them. Allowing children to sponsor parents risks creating further incentives for more children to be encouraged, or even forced, to leave their family and risk hazardous journeys to the UK to sponsor relatives. This plays into the hands of criminal gangs who exploit vulnerable people and goes against our safeguarding responsibilities.The Government believes the best interests of children is reflected in staying with their families, claiming asylum in the first safe country they reach – that is the fastest route to safety – and relying on safe and legal routes under the Immigration Rules or through resettlement schemes.

Asylum

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many asylum seekers reside in (a) the UK and (b) the North East, Yorkshire and Humber region.

Caroline Nokes: The Home Office publishes quarterly figures on the number of asylum seekers housed in dispersed accommodation, including under Section 95, by local authority in the Immigration Statistics release, in table as_16q and 17q in volume 4 of the Asylum data tables. These are available at:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-statistics-year-ending-june-2018/list-of-tables#asylumThis does not include those asylum seekers who are accommodated with friends and family, and who are not in receipt of support.

Asylum: Contracts

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many bids were received by the Home Office for the asylum accommodation and support contracts to begin in 2019 in (a) the original procurement exercise and (b) the second procurement exercise.

Caroline Nokes: The Asylum Accommodation and Support Contract(AASC) response to invitation to tender from the Home Office received a total of 19 bids across all seven regions, of which 5 were in relation to the second procurement exercise.

Asylum: Contracts

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment he has made of adequacy of the nine-month timescale for the (a) mobilisation of and (b) transition to the new asylum accommodation and support contracts.

Caroline Nokes: The Home Office has designed the project to replace the current asylum accommodation and support services so as to ensure a smooth transition of services from one Provider to another.The timetable allows eight months for mobilisation and transition activities, which is similar to the time that such activity took when the current contracts came into operation. The Asylum Accommodation and Support Contract(AASC) mobilisation transition plans have also built on a number of other lessons, including the creation of a team with suitable experience, expertise and understanding of the new contracts and the early engagement with enabling functions from across the Home Office to plan out the demands that will be placed on them.As we move to the mobilisation phase we will increase our engagement with Local Authorities, where my officials will be happy to discuss and address any concerns that Local Authorities have with the transition plans.

Asylum: Contracts

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will publish the information his Department has produced on why it was not possible to award the new asylum accommodation and support contracts under the original procurement exercise.

Caroline Nokes: The Home Office published the Asylum Accommodation and Support Contract (AASC) contract notice launched in December 2017 and following the launch of the AASC procurement, compliant bids that met the minimum requirements were not received for two regions; North East, Yorkshire and Humberside and Northern Ireland.Details of non-compliant bids are not disclosable due to commercial sensitivities.

Asylum: North of England

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many asylum seekers his Department plans to accommodate in the North East, Yorkshire and Humber region under the new asylum accommodation and support contracts in each year from the commencement of those contracts.

Caroline Nokes: To continue to meet UKVI’s obligation to provide accommodation & support to destitute asylum seekers, the Asylum Accommodation and Support Transformation (AAST) project has been established to design, develop and procure the future model for asylum accommodation and support, replacing the existing COMPASS arrangements when they expire in Sept 2019.UKVI cannot predict the number of asylum seekers who will need accommodation as intake is volatile and subject to change. However dispersal across the UK is carefully managed by the Home Office to ensure the best outcomes for asylum seekers and their host communities. We will continue to work with stakeholders within the existing and new contracting arrangements to manage and refine our dispersal arrangements.

Asylum: North of England

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many properties are currently maintained as part of the existing asylum accommodation and support contracts in the North East, Yorkshire and Humber region.

Caroline Nokes: The Home Office publishes quarterly figures on the number of asylum seekers housed in dispersed accommodation, including under Section 95, by local authority in the Immigration Statistics release, in table as_16q and 17q in volume 4 of the Asylum data tables. These are available at:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-statistics-year-ending-june-2018/list-of-tables#asylumThis does not include those asylum seekers who are accommodated with friends and family, and who are not in receipt of support.

Asylum: Homelessness

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps his Department has taken to ensure that asylum seekers are not made homeless if new asylum accommodation and support contracts are not in place before the expiry of the current contracts.

Caroline Nokes: The government will place the Entitlement to support under the forthcoming Asylum Accommodation and Support Contracts(AASC) will be based on the same principles as COMPASS: this means that all ‘eligible Service Users’ in receipt of support at the point of transition will become the responsibility of the AASC Provider; including those who have received a positive or negative asylum decision and who have not yet reached the end of the 28 and 21 day notice period.We are confident that there will be contracts in place, and we have a comprehensive transition plan. A contingency plan has also been designed, if needed, to ensure that service users will not be affected.

Asylum: Housing

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps his Department has taken to ensure that asylum seekers accommodated as part of the asylum accommodation and support contracts are not placed in shared bedrooms with non-family members.

Caroline Nokes: The forthcoming Asylum Accommodation and Support Contracts will permit the use of room sharing for some service users, providing it complies with the strict criteria set out in the contracts Statement of Requirements. This includes compliance relevant national and local housing regulations including any advice from social services and primary and secondary care bodies on whether room sharing is inappropriate for individual cases.In addition, Providers will be continue to be required to ensure that they take into account a service users individual characteristics and provide them with appropriate accommodation reflective of any changing needs, including adherence to religious practice.

EU Nationals: Private Rented Housing

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what right to rent checks landlords will be required to carry out on EU citizens during the period between March 2019 and December 2020 in the event of the UK leaving the EU (a) with and (b) without a deal.

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether landlords will be required to distinguish between EU citizens who arrived in the UK (a) before March 2019 and (b) during the transition period between March 2019 and December 2020 to check a person's right to rent.

Caroline Nokes: Landlords are already expected to conduct right to rent checks on EU citizens before the start of a tenancy, as they do with all prospective tenants. EU citizens may demonstrate their right to rent using a range of specified documentation, including their national passports or identity cards.These current arrangements will continue for the entire duration of the planned implementation period. In the unlikely event that we reach March 2019 without a deal, the Government has been clear that landlords will not be expected to differentiate between EU citizens who arrived in the UK before or after March 2019.

Skilled Workers: Visas

Alison Thewliss: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many of the 37 cases where the applicant was given the benefit of the doubt in the Review of applications by Tier 1 (General) migrants refused under paragraph 322(5) of the Immigration Rules have featured in media reports.

Caroline Nokes: The information requested is not held centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Married People: Visas

Peter Kyle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 21 November 2018 to Question 192122 on Visas: Applications, for what reason are there no appointments available for Spousal Extension Visas (Family Route) at the new UKVCAS service until January 2019, and if he will make a statement.

Caroline Nokes: Appointments for the Spousal Extension Visas (Family Route) will be available at the new UKVCAS service from 30 November for those customers who are applying for leave based on family life where one of the following conditions applies:they have extant leave;they are not applying for the first time;they are not switching from an unrelated routeIf customers applying for a Spousal Extension Visa do not meet the above criteria, then they must use existing services until the Service and Support Centres which open in January 2019.

Married People: Visas

Peter Kyle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps the Government is taking to make appointments available for Spousal Extension Visas (Family Route) between the closure of the old Premium Service Centres on 29 November 2018 and the opening of appointments at the new UKVCAS service in January 2019.

Caroline Nokes: There will be appointments available to affected Spousal Extension Visas (Family Route) applicants in the Premium Service Centres (PSCs) between 29 November 2018 until January 2019. Although the PSCs will close for most services at the end of November, we will continue to offer appointments to those customers who are not able to use the UK Visa and Citizenship Application Services and have chosen a 24-hour consideration.Customers will be advised about which services they are able to use when they make their application online.

National Police Air Service: Helicopters

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many operational helicopters the National Police Air Service has had in service in each of the last five years for which information is available.

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many bases the National Police Air Service has operated from in each of the last five years.

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many times Humberside Police force has requested support from the National Police Air Service.

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many times Humberside Police force has received support from the National Police Air Service.

Mr Nick Hurd: The National Police Air Service (NPAS) is a collaboration of English and Welsh Police Forces. The NPAS Strategic Board, comprised of Chief Constables and Police and Crime Commissioners, are responsible for overseeing the service.NPAS publish an annual report outlining the service’s performance and financial position. The Home Office does not collect performance information on NPAS.As set out in a study published by HM Inspector of Constabulary, Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS) in November 2017 NPAS are operating 19 helicopters from 15 bases. In addition they are purchasing four fixed wing aircraft. The HMICFRS study provides information concerning NPAS deployments by force area for 2016 however these exclude Humberside given the force joined NPAS in September 2016.

Wales Office

Prisons: Wales

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how many visits he has made to prisons in Wales.

Alun Cairns: Most recently I visited HMP & YOI Parc, and I intend to visit HMP & YOI Berwyn in the New Year.

Scotland Office

Universal Credit: Scotland

Rosie Cooper: What recent assessment the Government has made of the effect on low-income families of the roll-out of universal credit throughout Scotland.

Nigel Adams: Evidence shows that Universal Credit is working. It empowers people to move into work, work more hours and earn more, and I am pleased that the budget announced a £4.5bn cash boost for it, including measures that will allow millions of low-income families, many of them in Scotland, to keep more of what they earn.

Brexit: Scotland

Hugh Gaffney: What assessment the Government has made of the potential effect of the proposed EU withdrawal agreement on the Scottish economy.

David Mundell: The Government has now published EU Exit: Long-term economic analysis. This analysis shows the deal is the best deal available for jobs and our economy that allows us to honour the referendum and realise the opportunities of Brexit.

Income Tax: Scotland

John Howell: What recent assessment the Government has made of the effect on the Scottish economy of the devolution of powers to set the rates and bands of income tax payable by Scottish taxpayers.

David Mundell: The UK Government has delivered on its promise to devolve increased control over Income Tax to Scotland.As a result, changes to the higher rate threshold announced since April 2017 do not apply to the main income of Scottish higher or additional rate taxpayers.

Spirits: Scotland

Mark Menzies: What recent discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the effect on the Scottish economy of maintaining the current level of excise duty on spirits.

David Mundell: I have regular discussions with the Chancellor who recently announced that Spirits Duty will be frozen for the second year in a row.This represents a huge boost for to the Scotch Whisky industry which directly contributes over £3.2 billion to the Scottish economy.

Department for Exiting the European Union

Brexit

David T. C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, how much his Department plans to spend on preparations for the UK leaving the EU without a deal between now and March 2020.

Chris Heaton-Harris: The Department will be fulfilling its objectives within our Spending Review settlement, which provides funding through to March 2020.The Department does not record expenditure or forecasts against potential outcomes. It records expenditure and forecasts on a functional basis.Based on this, we are expecting to fulfill our Departmental objectives within our budget allocations up to March 2020.2018/19 Budget: £94.287m2019/20 Budget: £94.780m

Boats

Royston Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what discussions he has had with EU counterparts on whether UK boaters will require visas to sail into EU waters after the UK leaves the EU.

Chris Heaton-Harris: We have now agreed in principle a draft Withdrawal Agreement with the other 27 EU nations. To ensure that citizens and businesses in the UK and across the EU can plan for life after our withdrawal with confidence, this sets out the terms of an implementation period during which EU citizens and UK nationals will be able to sail into EU waters as they do now.The UK Government sees no reason why UK boaters should see any change as a result of the UK’s exit from the EU. For the most part, it is the rules and regulations of coastal states that apply rather than visas or EU legislation, and maritime transport is liberalised at the international level.The Political Declaration on the Framework for the Future Relationship between the EU and the UK Government is clear that connectivity in the maritime transport sector will be underpinned by the international legal framework. The future relationship should also facilitate cooperation on maritime safety and security.

Boats

Royston Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what assessment he has made of the ability of UK boats to enter EU waters after the UK leaves the EU; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Robin Walker: Maritime transport is liberalised at a global level. For the most part, it is the rules and regulations of coastal states that apply rather than EU legislation. Therefore, the Government sees no reason why there should be a change in the ability for UK boats to access EU water after the UK leaves the EU.The Government has set out that the future relationship between the UK and EU will provide for maritime connectivity, underpinned by the applicable international legal framework. These arrangements will be supported by cooperation between the UK and the EU on maritime safety and security.

British Overseas Territories: Brexit

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what account he has taken of the interests of the British Overseas Territories, apart from Gibraltar, in preparing the Draft Agreement on the withdrawal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland from the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community and the Outline Political Declaration on the Future Relationship.

Mr Robin Walker: Ministers and Officials regularly engage with all the Overseas Territories on Exit matters, including through the Joint Ministerial Council which will meet for the fifth time in December. The Government is committed to taking the interests of the Overseas Territories into account as we leave the EU, and getting a deal that works for the wider British family, including the Overseas Territories.The Overseas Territories are covered by the territorial scope of the Withdrawal Agreement and therefore the arrangements for the Implementation Period. As set out in the July White Paper, the UK will be seeking specific arrangements for the Crown Dependencies, Gibraltar and the other Overseas Territories, taking account of their existing relationships with the EU.

Brexit: Scotland

Lesley Laird: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what plans his Department has put in place for the effect on Scotland of the UK leaving the EU without a deal.

Mr Robin Walker: We have agreed in principle the terms of the UK’s smooth and orderly exit from the EU, as set out in the Withdrawal Agreement. While the chances of no deal have been reduced considerably, the government will continue to do the responsible thing and prepare for all eventualities, in case a final agreement cannot be reached. We have been clear from the start that the Devolved Administrations should be fully engaged in this process, as close cooperation between UK Government and the Devolved Administrations is essential to delivering an exit that works for all parts of the UK. The Department for Exiting the European Union (DExEU) and the Cabinet Office continue to work closely with the Scottish Government and other UK Government departments to prepare for Exit.UK Government departments have developed a wide number of plans to resolve operational issues in all scenarios across the whole of the UK, including Scotland, and are working closely with their counterparts in the Scottish Government as these plans develop.

Culture and Education: EU Action

James Frith: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what progress he has made in negotiating a co-operative accord on culture and education with the EU.

Mr Robin Walker: The cooperative accord on culture and education proposed in the White Paper [ref] demonstrates our undiminished commitment to supporting European culture and our ambitions for collaboration on education and training, including the provision of opportunities for young people. This will be a priority for negotiations on the future relationship.The Political Declaration is a significant step towards delivering on this proposal, setting out that the UK and EU will establish terms for UK participation in EU programmes in areas of shared interest, including culture and education, and wider dialogue and exchanges with a view to identify opportunities to cooperate, share best practice and act together. Both sides recognise the importance of mobility and the temporary movement of objects and equipment in enabling this.

EU Law

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, with reference to article 127 of the Draft agreement on the withdrawal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland from the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community, under what circumstances the UK will be able to refuse to be bound by the Union law imposed by that article; and what steps it will be possible to take to remedy situations in which Union law during the transition is not in the UK national interest.

Kwasi Kwarteng: We have provided for a time-limited implementation period precisely to give businesses and citizens certainty. This means that common rules will remain in place until the end of the period, allowing businesses to trade on the same terms as now up until the end of 2020.It takes on average two years for significant new rules to pass through the EU, and it is therefore very unlikely that significant legislation will pass during the implementation period.

Common Commercial Policy

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, with reference to the Draft agreement on the withdrawal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland from the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community, for what reasons it was decided that the UK shall harmonise its commercial policy applicable to its customs territory with the common commercial policy of the EU.

Chris Heaton-Harris: The agreed Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland, in the Withdrawal Agreement, guarantees that even in the unlikely event that the UK’s future relationship with the EU is not in place by the end of the Implementation Period, there will be no hard border between Northern Ireland and Ireland.The Prime Minister was always clear that there could be no customs border down the Irish Sea, which would see a division of the customs territory of the UK. As a result, the UK proposed a UK-wide customs arrangement, which has been secured in the Withdrawal Agreement. In order for the UK-wide customs arrangement to function, it requires the UK to align with the relevant aspects of the Common Commercial Policy. In this scenario, the UK would be able to negotiate, ratify and sign trade deals, and to bring into effect those elements that do not affect the Protocol - just as the government’s technical paper on this set out in June this year. Both sides have been clear that the backstop is an insurance policy which we do not expect to use, and if needed, is explicitly temporary.

Treasury

Mortgages: Interest Rates

Tim Loughton: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what support is available to borrowers seeking to access lower mortgage rates in the event that their proposed new lender or current lender is not signed up to the Government's voluntary agreement with UK Finance, the Building Socieities Association and the Intermediary Mortgage Lenders Association.

John Glen: 67 lenders representing 95% of the UK’s residential mortgage market have signed up to the industry voluntary agreement to help mortgage prisoners. As set out in my response to your PQ tabled 5th November 2018 officials in the Treasury continue to work closely with the FCA and industry to explore what more can be done. This will include where lenders are not signed up to the industry’s voluntary agreement.

Children: Day Care

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many people have reported technical issues with tax-free childcare payments to his Department as of October 2018; and how those people so affected will be compensated.

Elizabeth Truss: The vast majority of parents apply for and use their childcare accounts without problems. Where parents have experienced technical issues that impact them financially, HMRC has arrangements in place to ensure that they do not miss out as a result. Where parents report technical issues with their Tax-Free Childcare payments, HMRC pay compensation to reimburse them for any missed government top-up.To 31 October 2018, HMRC has received 4,560 complaints from parents who have experienced technical issues with the childcare service. HMRC does not hold information on the breakdown of the complaints in relation to Tax-Free Childcare payments specifically.

Buildings: VAT

Drew Hendry: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment the Government has made of the potential merits of reducing the VAT rate for goods and services required for the essential repair and maintenance of (a) residential and (b) commercial buildings.

Mel Stride: The government keeps all taxes under review, including VAT. Under EU rules, the government cannot reduce the rate of VAT on the repair and maintenance of commercial buildings. Applying the reduced rate of VAT on repairs and renovations of private dwellings would come at a significant cost to the Exchequer, estimated at £2.5 billion. Any future decisions on VAT will continue to be taken in line with the normal Budget process.

Tax Avoidance

Mr Nigel Evans: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 7 November 2018 to Questions 185525-8 on Tax Avoidance, whom he defines as (a) employers and (b) individuals.

Mr Nigel Evans: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer,  pursuant to the Answer of 7 November 2018 to Questions 185525-8 on Tax Avoidance, (a) how many and (b) what proportion of the scheme users classified as employers are individuals who were paid through their own limited companies.

Mel Stride: In the context of the legislation at S554A of ITEPA 2003, employers are those who have set up a disguised remuneration (DR) scheme and remunerated their staff or themselves through the DR scheme they have set up. Individuals are employees who are personally responsible for their tax arrangements because HMRC cannot reasonably collect the liability from the employer.A breakdown of the number of DR users classified as employers who are individuals paid through their own limited companies is not available. However, the structure of this type of scheme and the costs involved with using one means that it is not likely to be an individual paying themselves through their own limited company.HMRC are pursing employers who have used a DR scheme to pay their employees. So far, over 90% of the £650 million collected since Budget 2016 has been collected from employers.

Tax Avoidance

Mr Nigel Evans: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 7 November 2018 to Questions 185525-8 on Tax Avoidance, how many promoters and providers of disguised remuneration schemes have been (a) pursued or investigated and (b) penalised or prosecuted by HMRC.

Mr Nigel Evans: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 7 November 2018 to Questions 185525-8 on Tax Avoidance, what estimate he has made of the number of promoters and providers of disguised remuneration schemes he expects to be (a) pursued or investigated and (b) penalised or prosecuted by HMRC.

Mel Stride: HMRC takes tackling promoters of avoidance schemes seriously, but does not currently categorise information in such a way as to identify disguised remuneration schemes specifically. In recent years, HMRC has been investigating over 100 promoters and others involved in avoidance, including disguised remuneration arrangements. In the last year, HMRC has taken litigation action against 5 scheme promoters for failure to disclose under Disclosure of Tax Avoidance Schemes with others deciding to disclose to avoid litigation. Further cases will be litigated in the year ahead.HMRC has used its powers under the Promoters of Tax Avoidance Schemes to challenge promoters and others. HMRC has also made three successful complaints to the Advertising Standards Authority about misleading advertising; two of which relate to disguised remuneration schemes. HMRC will also consider criminal investigation and make referrals to prosecuting authorities, where appropriate. Since the formation of HMRC’s Fraud Investigation Service on 1 April 2016 more than 15 individuals have been convicted for offences relating to the promotion and operation of marketed tax avoidance schemes and sentenced to over 95 years custodial with an additional 4 years suspended sentences being ordered, additional matters are the subject of ongoing enquiries.

Business: Procurement

Helen Goodman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the Draft Agreement on the withdrawal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland from the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community, published in November 2018, what his assessment is of the effect of articles 47-50 of that agreement on UK supply chains.

Mel Stride: The Government has agreed in principle the terms of the UK’s smooth and orderly exit from the EU, as set out in the Withdrawal Agreement. It includes a time-limited Implementation Period that provides a bridge to the future relationship, allowing businesses to continue trading as now until the end of 2020. Articles 47-50 provide an agreed high level text on how goods and customs procedures will be treated during this period. Goods in transit to or from the UK to the EU will retain their Union status and will be subject to existing declaration principles contained in the Union Customs Code (UCC). Additionally, UCC rules will be applied to non-union goods placed in temporary storage or special procedures in the UK and before separation for up to one year after the end of the Implementation Period, allowing trade time to discharge goods to a final customs procedure. The draft Political Declaration on the future UK-EU relationship sets out a plan for a free trade area for goods, with no tariffs and no quotas, combining deep regulatory and customs cooperation and underpinned by provisions ensuring open and fair competition.

EU Budget

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he plans to take to ensure that the European Court of Auditors declare EU accounts to be fair and accurate before the Treasury pays the bill for the UK to leave the EU.

John Glen: The Government has negotiated arrangements to provide assurance on payments made under the financial settlement. This includes the right to appoint auditors working on the Government’s behalf to assure the implementation of the financial settlement. On the UK’s request, the EU will provide these auditors with information and assistance to allow them to accomplish their task. The use of auditors will play an important role in ensuring the UK only pays what it should under the terms of the agreement.

Bank Services: Fraud

James Cartlidge: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department is taking to tackle online scams which rely on the individual voluntarily transferring money.

John Glen: The Government recognises that fraudulent transactions of this manner, commonly known as Authorised Push Payment (APP) scams, can significantly impact those affected. In 2015, the Government set up the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) with a statutory objective to, among other things, ensure that payment systems are operated in a way that takes account of users’ needs. The PSR is addressing these kinds of scams as part of a programme of work announced in December 2016, following a Which? Super-complaint on the issue. In April 2018, the PSR established a steering group of consumer representatives and banks to draft an industry code to help protect consumers against these kinds of scam. The code was published for consultation in September 2018, with the intention for the final code to be in place in 2019. The aim of this code is to reduce the incidence of APP scams, and it will set out rules on how industry should reimburse consumers in certain scenarios. It is right that industry takes the necessary steps to protect consumers against this kind of fraud. The Government supports the work the PSR is driving forward to tackle these kinds of scams in conjunction with industry, consumer groups and other regulatory and government bodies.

Credit: Interest Rates

Stephen Twigg: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of extending the cap on interest and charges relating to payday lending to (a) credit cards and (b) overdrafts.

John Glen: On 1 April 2014, regulation of the consumer credit market, including the power to cap the cost of all forms of credit, was transferred to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). We have passed the Honourable Gentleman’s question on to the FCA, who will reply directly by letter. A copy of the letter will be placed in the Library of the House.

Credit: Interest Rates

Stephen Twigg: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the number of public sector workers using payday loan companies.

John Glen: On 1 April 2014, regulation of the consumer credit market, including payday lenders, was transferred to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The Government legislated to require the FCA to introduce a cap on the cost of payday loans, which came into force on 2 January 2015. The FCA published a feedback statement in July 2017, showing that the price cap has been effective, leading to savings of approximately £150 million for 760,000 individuals using payday loans each year. The Government does not hold data on the number of public sector workers using payday loans companies.

Borders

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what progress has been made in the Border Delivery Group since July 2018.

Mel Stride: The Border Delivery Group has met with Northern Ireland ports and airports and other stakeholders three times, including twice as part of a Northern Ireland Borders Steering Group. It has also visited, with Border Force colleagues, each of the seven main Northern Ireland ports and airports to work through the potential impact of EU Exit at each location (based on the same assumptions as we have applied to other UK ports and airports), and to enable each port or airport to develop their own plans to address identified impacts, especially in respect of a potential No Deal. The Border Delivery Group has further meetings scheduled with Northern Ireland ports and airports, Northern Ireland Civil Service, and the Police Service of Northern Ireland, on operational planning for EU exit.

National Income

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what comparative assessment his Department has made of the effect on GDP of the UK (a) leaving the EU under the terms of the draft withdrawal agreement and (b) remaining a member of the EU.

John Glen: Through the Withdrawal Agreement the Government has agreed on the creation of a free trade area for goods, combining deep regulatory and customs co-operation with zero tariffs, no fees, charges or quantitative restrictions across all goods sectors; the first such agreement between an advanced economy and the EU. Government analysis published on 28 November considers the relative impacts of different trading relationships in the long term, after the UK’s new relationship with the EU comes into effect. Bank of England analysis published on 28 November shows how the EU Withdrawal Agreement will affect the Bank’s ability to deliver its statutory remits for monetary and financial stability.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport: Brexit

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how much his Department has spent on consultancy fees relating to the UK leaving the EU since July 2016.

Margot James: DCMS spend on consultancy fees for work relating to EU Exit totals £1.2m since July 2016. The suppliers of this work are PricewaterhouseCoopers and ICF Consultancy, as well as individual contractors.

Internet: Abuse

Hannah Bardell: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the recommendations of the WebRoots Democracy report, Kinder, Gentler Politics: Tackling the rise of online abuse in political debate, published on 16 October 2018, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of (a) creating an online abusers register and (b) commissioning research into the links between anonymity and online abuse.

Margot James: The Government has made clear that more needs to done to tackle online abuse, including anonymous abuse. We will publish a joint DCMS-Home Office White Paper in the Winter, setting out a range of legislative and non-legislative measures, and establishing clear standards for tech companies to help keep UK citizens safe.

Digital Broadcasting: Radio

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if he make an assessment of the importance of the transition to digital radio to the financial stability of small commercial stations.

Margot James: Take up of digital radio by listeners continues to make good progress and has exceeded 50% share of all radio listening. We are considering the next steps for supporting the future development of digital radio and will take account of the needs of small commercial stations in developing these plans.

JPI Media

Lesley Laird: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what information his Department holds on the current board members of JPI Media; and of those members, how many served previously on the Johnston Press board.

Margot James: The directors of JPI Media Holdings Ltd are David Duggins, Dean Merritt, and John Ensall, none of whom have previously been directors of Johnston Press.

Tech City UK: Ethnic Groups and Females

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what progress TechCity UK has made in promoting (a) women and (b) BAME people within that organisation.

Margot James: Tech Nation's (formerly Tech City UK) current executive team is now 75% women, and the “heads of” roles are 66% women. Meanwhile, Government is addressing gender diversity in industry by supporting the Tech Talent Charter. The Charter is a private sector initiative designed to promote diversity in the tech workforce. Signatories of the Charter pledge to implement recruitment and retention practices that will address the gender imbalance of those in tech roles.  Over 290 companies, from international tech giants right through to start-ups, SME’s and charities have already signed the Charter, and all government departments have agreed to sign the Charter.

Tech City UK: Ethnic Groups and Females

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what progress Tech City has made in funding tech start-ups led by (a) women and (b) BAME people.

Margot James: Tech Nation (formerly Tech City UK) does not directly fund tech start-ups, though they do run programmes such as Rising Stars, Upscale, and Future Fifty, that help start-ups access funding. They have published a report that highlights the state of diversity in the UK tech sector, and the need to do more especially for female founders. The report is available at https://technation.io/insights/diversity-and-inclusion-in-uk-tech-companies/ They have also joined a consortium with Capital Enterprise, Your Startup, Your Story (YSYS) and Diversity VC, funded by JP Morgan, that aims to double the number of female and ethnic minority founders in three London boroughs by 2020. Meanwhile, as part of the Government’s work to increase diversity and build a Britain in which small businesses continue to thrive, Alison Rose will lead a review into barriers to female entrepreneurship, and exploring what can be done to overcome them. The review will bolster the Government’s work to make it easier for women to access the support they need to get their ideas off the ground and grow their businesses. The government will consider and respond to the findings of the review when it is published in the Spring.

Inclusive Tech Alliance

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions the Government has had with the Inclusive Tech Alliance in the last 12 months.

Margot James: The UK Digital Strategy set out our commitment to enabling a more diverse digital workforce. As the digital revolution progresses, many more jobs will require digital skills and many more tech roles will be created. We cannot afford for underrepresented workers, such as women or those from BAME backgrounds, to be excluded from or unable to progress within these roles. However, Government cannot do this alone and we have engaged with numerous stakeholders to help us further our aim. We are aware that the Inclusive Tech Alliance launched on 14 November 2018 and we will be engaging with them.

Arts: EU Grants and Loans

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether the Government plans to remain part of Creative Europe after the current funding period concludes in 2020.

Margot James: The UK will always be a European country that advocates for cultural diversity as part of its global identity and is committed to continuing its contribution to and support of European culture. The Government has been clear that will be explore participation in any successor programme to Creative Europe. Where EU funding programmes are to the UK and EU's joint advantage, we want to discuss continued participation as part of the negotiations. Ultimately, the decision on which programmes are in the UK’s interests will be decided as part of the future partnership negotiations, which are ongoing.

Children: Internet

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what progress the UK Safer Internet Centre has made in improving children's digital safety.

Margot James: The UK Safer Internet Centre is a partnership that carries out a range of programmes in support of children's internet safety. These include a helpline to provide support to professionals working with children and young people with online safety issues; a hotline that provides an anonymous and safe place to report and remove child sexual abuse imagery and videos; and an Awareness Centre, which provides advice and support to children and young people, parents and carers, schools and the children's workforce.Each year, the UK Safer Internet Centre coordinates Safer Internet Day across UK. This forms a key part of national online safety activity. An impact assessment report on Safer Internet Day 2018 showed that it had reached 45 percent of children and 30 percent of parents - and that as a result, 80 percent of these children felt more confident about what to do if they are worried about something online , and 74 percent of these parents had a conversation with their children about internet safety.

Cybercrime

Jo Platt: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent estimate he has made of the number of consumers who will benefit from the Cyber Accelerator scheme; and whether he has set a target for such numbers.

Margot James: The Cyber Accelerator programme is giving our innovative companies access to world class experts in government, academia and industry to ensure the UK is the safest place to go online and start a digital business. No estimate of the numbers of consumers who will benefit has been made, nor is one planned. This would be hard to do with accuracy.The NCSC Cyber Accelerator, and London Office for Rapid Cyber Advancement (LORCA) work with companies to develop products and services that will enhance the UK’s cyber ecosystem, servicing the needs of national security and industry, as well as consumers.In the past 18 months the first two cohorts of the NCSC Cyber Accelerator have raised more than £20 million in funding, and created 19 UK jobs. The Third cohort started in October 2018. The nine companies selected to take part in LORCA’s first programme started in July. LORCA are currently recruiting for a second cohort to start in early 2019.

Digital Technology

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what targets he has set for digital inclusion and whether he plans to update the Government Digital Inclusion Strategy 2014.

Margot James: The Government’s Digital Strategy, published in March last year, sets out the Government’s approach to tackling digital exclusion. It recognises that for the UK to be a world-leading digital economy that works for everyone, it is crucial that everyone has the digital skills they need to fully participate in society. The Government is committed to addressing the digital divide between those who have been able to embrace the digital world and those who have not.We recently published our plans to improve adult basic digital skills by updating the national standards setting out the digital skills people need to get on in life and work and by introducing improved basic digital skills qualifications at two levels:‘beginner’ designed for adults with little or no prior experience of using digital devices or the internet‘essential’ designed for adults with some experience of using digital devices and the internet but lacking the full range of basic digital skills needed for life and work.We will be introducing a national entitlement to basic digital skills courses from 2020, similar to the existing legal entitlements for English and Maths.DCMS launched an innovation fund in September specifically targeting the digital inclusion of disabled and older people, with a further focus on those in rural areas, and on using digital to tackle loneliness. The aim of the fund is to help ensure that ‘what works’ on digital inclusion is identified, replicated and scaled. We have also commissioned a feasibility study to look at whether outcomes based commissioning models, including Social Impact Bonds, could be used to improve outcomes, particularly for those groups that are most likely to be digitally excluded.Government is also tackling digital exclusion via the ‘Future Digital Inclusion’ programme funded by DfE and managed by the Good Things Foundation and delivered through the 3,000 strong Online Centres network. To date, this programme has supported over 800,000 adult learners to develop their basic digital skills, many of whom are socially excluded. Further, the NHS Digital ‘Widening Digital Participation’ programme develops projects that enable people in England to improve their digital health skills and to increase their access to digital services and tools that support their health and care.

Attorney General

Dementia: Prosecutions

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Attorney General, what guidance he has published on laying criminal charges against people with dementia.

Robert Buckland: All decisions to prosecute made by the Crown Prosecution Service must meet the Full Code Test set out in the Code for Crown Prosecutors. The Code makes it clear that there is a balance to be struck between the public interest in diverting a defendant with significant mental illness such as dementia from the criminal justice system and other public interest factors in favour of prosecution, including the need to safeguard the public.The eighth edition of the Code for Crown Prosecutors was published in October 2018. Prosecutors are asked to “have regard to whether the suspect is, or was at the time of the offence, affected by any significant mental or physical ill health or disability, as in some circumstances this may mean that it is less likely that a prosecution is required. However, prosecutors will also need to consider how serious the offence was, whether the suspect is likely to re-offend and the need to safeguard the public or those providing care to such persons.”The existing CPS legal guidance on prosecuting ‘Mentally Disordered Offenders’ is currently being revised to include specific guidance on prosecuting cases where the suspect suffers from a condition such as dementia. This will be published for public consultation in 2019.

Crown Prosecution Service: Staff

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Attorney General, pursuant to the Answer of 20 November 2018 to Question 191883, what the change was in the number of (a) full-time and (b) part-time personnel employed by the Crown Prosecution Service between (i) 2012-13 and (ii) 2017-18.

Robert Buckland: Details of the full time and part time personnel employed by the Crown Prosecution Service in 2012/13 and 2017/18 are shown in the table below. YearFull Time PersonnelPart Time PersonnelTotals2012/135468186173292017/18441715635980Difference-1051-298-1349(Data Source CPS Trent HR Database as at 26/11/18)

Money Laundering: Convictions and Prosecutions

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Attorney General, how many accountants have been (a) prosecuted and (b) convicted for high-end money laundering by the (i) Serious Fraud Office and (ii) Crown Prosecution Service in each year since 2014.

Robert Buckland: Sections 327, 328, 329 and 330 of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 create provisions to deal with offences of money laundering. The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the number of prosecutions and convictions under POCA where money laundering is the principal offence. There is no legal definition or specific criminal offence of “high end” money laundering. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) does not maintain a central record of the number of defendants prosecuted for, and convicted of these offences. This information could only be obtained by examining CPS case files, which would incur disproportionate cost. CPS holds limited information on the number of offences which were charged and which reached a first hearing in the Magistrates Court. This does not equate to the number of defendants charged as single defendant may be charged with more than one offence. The figures for the period since 2014 are provided in the table below. 2015-20162016-20172017-2018Sections 327 to 330 - Proceeds of Crime Act 20024,5424,8664,813 The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has prosecuted four individuals for money laundering offences since 2014. Two of these prosecutions resulted in a successful conviction in 2018. One of the two people who was prosecuted but acquitted was a qualified accountant.

Money Laundering: Convictions and Prosecutions

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Attorney General, how many estate agents have been (a) prosecuted and (b) convicted for high-end money laundering by the (i) Serious Fraud Office and (ii) Crown Prosecution Service in each year since 2014.

Robert Buckland: Sections 327, 328, 329 and 330 of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 create provisions to deal with offences of money laundering. The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the number of prosecutions and convictions under POCA where money laundering is the principal offence. There is no legal definition or specific criminal offence of “high end” money laundering. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) does not maintain a central record of the number of defendants prosecuted for, and convicted of these offences. This information could only be obtained by examining CPS case files, which would incur disproportionate cost. CPS holds limited information on the number of offences which were charged and which reached a first hearing in the Magistrates Court. This does not equate to the number of defendants charged as single defendant may be charged with more than one offence. The figures for the period since 2014 are provided in the table below. 2015-20162016-20172017-2018Sections 327 to 330 - Proceeds of Crime Act 20024,5424,8664,813 The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has prosecuted four individuals for money laundering offences since 2014. Two of these prosecutions resulted in a successful conviction in 2018.